Kiss It Better
by TheLoversTheDreamersAndMe
Summary: Series of stories revolving around Peter Parker and his new family, Pepper, Tony, and the Avengers. Chapter 16: Peter learns a little more of Natasha's past and finds a way to help.
1. Kiss It Better

"Sir, Peter seems to have fallen down the stairs and seems to be in considerable pain," F.R.I.D.A.Y. alerted Tony, who was tinkering in his lab, just as a "Mr Stark!" sounded down the hall. Tony leapt up, calling for Pepper as he went.

"Kid?" he asked, arriving at the bottom of the stairs and kneeling by Peter, who was sprawled on the floor, clutching his head.

"Mr Stark, hey. I, was, just... checking the floors!" Peter pushed his mask up and gave a lopsided smile.

"Pete, your head is bleeding." Tony reached out a hand and helped him up just as Pepper arrived at the scene.

"Peter? What happened?"

"Um, nothing?" Peter tried to pull his mask back down, but Tony wouldn't let him. Peter sighed. "Can I just go on patrol now?"

"Nope." Tony led him up the stairs, Pepper following behind.

"I'll get you an ice pack," Pepper said, breaking off towards one of the many kitchens of Stark Tower.

"Thanks, Miss Potts," Peter said weakly. "Mr Stark, just let me go." Peter pulled his arm from Tony's grip.

"No, kid, not until I look at that bruise." Tony probed the bump, which was red, turning purple, and bleeding slightly. "So, tell me, Pete. How does a kid with the strength, balance and agility of a spider _fall down the stairs?" _

Peter shrugged, turning his head away. Tony grabbed his jaw and moved his head back. Peter sighed and resigned himself to be prodded and poked.

"Mr Stark, it hurts," he finally said as Pepper returned with a bag of ice wrapped in a towel.

"What do you want me to do about it, kiss it better?" Tony asked dryly as he pressed the ice to Peter's temple.

"Ya know what, Mr Stark?" Peter began, slightly angry. "Yeah, I do!"

Tony blanched. That smart remark was supposed to be a joke.

"Well, Tony?" Pepper asked, putting her hands on hips. "You asked him if that was what he wanted. He said yes. So do it."

Tony sighed, blushed, rolled his eyes and stepped back. "No, he's fine. Aren'tcha, Spiderling?"

"Oh, yes, do I look okay to you?" Peter asked dryly, gesturing to the growing bruise on his temple. Pepper leaned down and kissed the bruise. Peter blushed. "Thanks, Miss Potts." Pepper smiled.

"Your turn, Tony."

Tony sighed, groaned, and bent down, pressing a scratchy kiss to Peter's temple.

"Happy?" he asked.

"Yes, quite," Peter replied, mock polite.

"Now, if I don't get to go on patrol, I have homework." Peter walked away.

"That's an excuse I've heard before!" Tony called after him, teasing. Pepper set hands on hips and glared at Tony. "What?" Tony asked, alarmed.

Pepper just glared.

...

Hope you enjoyed! I'm taking requests! No slash please.


	2. Dad

For showstopper92.

"Mr Stark?" Peter called over the AC/DC music blasting in Tony's laboratory. "Are you in here?"

"Yeah, kid?" Tony called over the music. "Fri, turn the music off." Highway to Hell suddenly stopped blaring, and Tony emerged from behind a piece of machinery, wiping engine grease from his hands on the seat of his jeans. It was strange, to say in the least, to see Mr Stark outside of professional meetings full of pressed suits and combed hair accompanied by snazzy glasses. Mr Stark in jeans and an AC/DC t-shirt with grease smudges on his face and in his hair was a strange sight indeed. "What brings you by?"

"Oh, um, Aunt May's out and I could, uh, use some help on my Algebra 2 homework?" Peter mumbled, glancing around the workshop.

"Sure, kid. Whatcha got?" Tony gestured for Peter's papers, which he rapidly pulled out of his backpack.

"We're graphing circles and ellipses. I've got the circles down but I don't really understand the ellipses." Peter pulled a pencil from his backpack.

"Yeah, okay, so you..."

Half hour later, Peter was whipping through his problems on his homework and acing the ones Tony threw at him.

"Thanks, Dad! Uh, Mr Stark!" Peter ducked his head and hid his blush. _Had he just called Mr Stark "Dad?" _

"Uh, what?" Tony asked, somewhat surprised. "What did you say?"

"Nothing," Peter mumbled, brushing his hair out of his eyes.

"Pete?"

"I called you Dad, okay? It was an accident!" Peter shouted fiercely, slamming his pencil down on the worktable, making Tony jump.

"Hey, it's okay, Spiderling, but we're not quite there yet," Tony said quietly, setting a hand on Peter's shoulder.

"Sorry, Mr Stark." Peter began gathering his papers and pencils, shoving them in his backpack. "I should go." He moved to stand.

"Hey, no, where are you going? I thought we could give your suit some adjustments?" Tony grabbed Peter's arm to stop his march towards the door. Peter's eyes lit up.

"Really?"

"Really!"

"Thanks, Da- Mr Stark!" Peter quickly caught himself and sneaked a glance at Tony's expression. He tousled Peter's hair.

"Not quite there yet, Spiderling. But almost."


	3. For Good Measure

For the guest reviewer.

"Ouch." Peter rubbed his head as he smacked it into the doorframe, not looking up from the book his nose was buried in. He glanced up for a split second to move over and walk through the door. Tony's head shot up from behind the bar.

"Kid?"

"I'm fine, Mr Stark," Peter mumbled, rubbing his head.

"Are you sure, Peter?" Steve asked from his place on the couch.

"Yep, totally fine, Captain." Peter turned a page in his book. His face was scrunched up in pain as he read.

"You don't look fine, _pauk-detka,_" Nat said, calling him "spiderbaby" in Russian. Peter, not understanding Russian, ignored the nickname he definitely would've objected.

"Your head is bruised," Banner pointed out.

"I'm aware," Peter snapped.

"C'mere, Spiderling," Tony ordered, none too gently. "Put the book down."

Clint stood up and prodded Peter when he didn't move towards him.

"Mr Stark, you're gonna make me cry in front of everyone. It hurts," Peter mumbled, swatting away Tony's probing hands.

"That's why you should watch where you're going and not read while you're walking," Tony shot back, smacking the back of Peter's hand when the boy tried to push his hands away.

"Ow." Peter glared at him.

"Hold still, Spiderbaby," Tony ordered.

"Mr Stark! Spiderbaby?!" Peter hissed, glaring at his mentor with ferocity. Tony merely nodded with a smirk. He pulled a small first aid kit out from under the counter and grabbed an antiseptic pad.

"Stop that, Mr Stark! It hurts!" Peter yipped as Tony dabbed at the bump.

"Aw, did the spiderbaby bump his head? Does he need Mr Stark to kiss it better?" Tony teased. Peter blushed furiously. As if to make things worse, Tony actually did kiss it better.

"Mr Stark!" Peter objected, leaping back, away from Tony, glaring.

"What?" Tony asked innocently, looking the slightest bit confused. "That's what you wanted last time."

Peter blushed darker and looked away.

"Tony, don't embarrass the kid," Banner said, pushing his glasses farther up his nose. Clint snickered and Nat smacked him on the head. Clint glared at her.

"Don't worry about it, kid. Tony's just trying to help," Steve said, running a lazy hand through his hair. Peter blushed.

"What's with you, Pete? Did puberty hit? You're suddenly clumsy, your hormones are raging, and you seem to have grown three inches in a week."

It didn't seem possible for Peter to blush more, but he did until it looked like he was sick with a fever, his face was that flushed.

"Mr Stark!"

"Hey, it's okay, Peter. Tony's just being a jerk!" Steve piped up from the couch, reaching over the arm and flicking the footrest lever. "Puberty's a normal thing!"

"Yeah, see Clint over there?" Tony asked, smirking. "I don't think he ever hit it. He's just a big kid."

"Hey!" Clint objected, jumping up from the couch where he had been massaging Natasha's shoulders, who was seated on the floor, nearly kicking her in the head.

"Woah, siddown, Barton," Nat snapped, grabbing his pant leg and pulling him down, then reaching up and cuffing him upside the head.

"Ow, Nat," Clint hissed through his teeth.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I think Tony's right. Clint's just a big baby." Nat gave a smirk and tucked a strand of red hair behind her ear.

"I am not!" Clint exclaimed, indignant. Nat cuffed his ear again and laughed when Clint whined. "Will you stop doing that?"

"Be tough, Robin Hood," Tony called to the archer, grinning.

"Says the one who has to wear a big scary suit to look tough," Clint shot back.

"Oh, well at least I have better weapons than a carbon fiber stick with a rubber band hooked on the ends," Tony snarked, that mischevious sparkle twinkling in the corner of his eyes.

"Yeah, well-"

"Shut up!" Steve snapped, smacking Clint on the head and hurling a pillow in Tony's direction.

"Ow!" Clint yelled. _"Stop doing that!"_

Natasha laughed and Clint poked her in the back with his toe. When she turned to glare at him, he stuck his tongue out at her. Peter giggled. Natasha cuffed Clint again, then leaned against the couch and rolled her shoulders, a silent reminder to Clint to continue the motion. Clint scowled, but did as asked, rubbing his head.

"All good, Spiderbaby?" Tony asked, turning in Peter's direction once more.

"All good," Peter replied. "Can I go back to my book now?"

"Yeah, sure, go ahead." Tony nodded and poured himself a drink. Peter grabbed his book and went to sit cross-legged on the couch between Clint and Steve.

"You okay, kid?" Clint whispered, nudging Peter with his elbow.

"Yeah, totally fine, Mr Barton."

"Ugh, don't call me that. It makes me sound like an old man. It's Clint."

"Okay,... Clint," Peter echoed.

"Hey, quit talking and get back to work," Nat piped up from the floor, reaching up to smack Clint's head.

"Hey! OW! WHat was that for?!"

"Good measure," Nat replied. Peter laughed.

...

There, a bit of a longer chapter for ya.


	4. Bayushki Bayu

For Princess Virius Potter.

...

"Ahh!" Peter bolted upright and looked around frantically, eyes wide and forehead sweaty. Where was he?! Oh yes, in Germany, after the battle at the airport. He was in a large hotel room with two rooms, and Natasha's room adjoined through the doors in the center of the wall in the main area. Vision and T'challa were down the hall in rooms of their own, and Rhodes was in the hospital. Tony was in the other bedroom, sound asleep.

Peter tried to slow his breathing as his shoulders heaved with each breath. His chest ached from the impact at the airport, and the battle was still fresh in his mind, replaying over and over, not letting him sleep peacefully.

"Peter?" Natasha burst quietly into the room, dressed in a cropped black tank top and leggings, her hair wild from sleep. A large scar ran along the left side of her belly between her bellybutton and her hip, and Peter wondered how she had gotten it. "I heard you yell, so I came through the adjoining doors. Are you all right?"

Peter took a deep breath and attempted to speak.

"N-nigh-m-mare. 'M 'k now."

"You don't sound like it," the Black Widow replied, blunt as usual.

"Bat-tle has m' shaken up a lil'," Peter said, wrapping his arms around his knees and resting his chin on top.

"We're all shaken, _pauk-detka_," Natasha replied.

"Agent R-romanoff, what does th-at mean?" Peter asked, his brow furrowing. "You k-keep calling me that and I-i don't kn-know what it means."

"It means "spiderbaby" in Russian, _detka_," Natasha replied, and Peter blushed, though Nat couldn't see it in the dark. "Is that okay?"

"Yeah, it's okay."

Nat nodded. "Do you need anything? A glass of water? A night light?"

"Can I- can I have a hug?" Peter asked bashfully, unrolling from the ball he was curled in.

"Of course." Nat held out her arms and, to Natasha's surprise, Peter scrambled into her lap. She wrapped her arms around him and Peter buried his face in her neck and cried. Natasha rubbed his back and sang a Russian lullaby.

_"Spi, mladenets moy prekrasnyy,_  
_Bayushki-bayu._  
_Tikho smotrit mesyats yasnyy_  
_V kolybel' tvoyu._  
_Stanu skazyvat' ya skazki,_  
_Pesenku spoyu;_  
_Ty zh dremli, zakryvshi glazki,_  
_Bayushki-bayu._

_Sam uznaesh', budet vremya,_  
_Brannoe zhit'e;_  
_Smelo vdenesh' nogu v stremya_  
_I voz'mesh' ruzh'e._  
_Ya sedel'tse boevoe_  
_Shelkom razosh'yu..._  
_Spi, ditya moe rodnoe,_  
_Bayushki-bayu._

_Bogatyr' ty budesh' s vidu_  
_I kazak dushoy._  
_Provozhat' tebya ya vyydu —_  
_Ty makhnesh' rukoy..._  
_Skol'ko gor'kikh slez ukradkoy_  
_Ya v tu noch' prol'yu!.._  
_Spi, moy angel, tikho, sladko,_  
_Bayushki-bayu."_

Peter relaxed visibly and snuffled into Natasha's neck. Tony, suddenly awakened from Nat's song, shuffled into the room, the ARC reactor glowing from underneath his white t-shirt.

"What's going on?" He mumbled, rubbing his eyes. Peter startled and jumped out of Natasha's arms, scrambling back onto his bed.

"Why are you in here, Nat? Why are you awake, Peter?" Tony asked, scrubbing sleep from his eyes with a tired fist.

"I woke up and Agent Romanoff heard me and came in," Peter explained vaguely, glancing down at his toes.

"And so Nat decided to sing to you?" Tony pressed.

"Yes," Peter said flatly."I'll go back to bed now." Peter rolled over and closed his eyes, pretending to be asleep as Tony pulled Nat from the room.

"What'd you have to go and do that for?" Tony snapped once Peter's door was shut. "He's my kid, Nat. Mine." Tony jabbed his chest with his thumb.

"Then where were you when he screamed in panic?" Nat hissed back, crossing angry arms over her chest. Tony shrugged.

"I had noise-cancelling headphones on. I don't do well in hotels. I got up for some water and I heard you singing when I took them off."

Nat crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him. Tony sighed and threw up his hands.

"I'm going back to bed. Goodnight." Tony spun on his heel and walked back to his bedroom. Nat sighed and went back to her room.

"Jerk," she muttered.

...

Peter shuffled down to the lobby in his pjs, searching for the complimentary breakfast.

"Mornin', Agent Romanoff," he mumbled, scrubbing sleep from his eyes. Natasha glanced up from her cup of coffee and plate of eggs.

"Hey, baby," she replied. "Sleep okay?"

Peter blushed. "Yeah."

"Sorry Tony was a jerk last night."

"It's okay, I'm used to it," Peter joked. "I'm gonna grab some breakfast, be right back." Peter trotted off and returned shortly with a waffle and a cup of cranberry juice. He sat down next to Natasha and tucked into his breakfast. Tony shuffled down a little later, ARC reactor clumsily covered with a zip-up.

"Share, Stark," Natasha said jokingly, gesturing at the innocent teen next to her.

"Fine. But I get him tomorrow," Stark said with a cheeky grin as he passed.

...

Hope you enjoyed!

Translation of the song:

Sleep, my beautiful good boy.

Bayushki Bayu.

Quietly the moon is looking

Intoo your cradle.

I will tell you fairy tales

And sing you little songs

But you must slumber with your little eyes closed

Bayushki Bayu.

The time will come when you will learn

The soldier's way of life.

Boldly you'll put your foot in the stirrup

And take the gun.

The saddle-cloth for your battle horse

I will sew for you from silk.

Sleep now, my dear little child.

Bayushki Bayu.

(Bayushki bayu is the Russian phrase used to lull a baby to sleep.)

Pauk is the English translation of spider. Detka is the English translation of baby.


	5. An Inch Of Your Life

_**An Inch of Your Life**_

"Hey Mr Rhodes, sir, wanna do something fun?" Peter asked Rhodey, looking up from his algebra homework.

"Depends," Rhodey muttered.

"Wanna catch me in mid-air when I jump off the tower?"

"Absolutely not."

"Please? It'll be fun." Peter continued to pester until Rhodey finally gave in.

"Fine, but if Tony finds out, we're toast."

"Yahoo! Come on, suit up!" Peter bolted to his room to throw on his suit, then met War Machine on the top of the tower. Rhodes flew down to about halfway.

"Ready, kid?" He asked through the internal comms.

"Yep!" Peter proclaimed. "Here we go!" Peter jumped. "Wahooooooo!" He screamed, falling until War MAchine caught him firmly under the armpits and flew him back up to the top.

"That was wicked!" Peter exclaimed. "Let's do it again!"

They continued their game until Tony began to wonder where they were. Hearing strange noises coming from the top of the tower, he investigated. He arrived just in time to see Peter jump down and be caught by Rhodey!

"What are you doing?!" Tony said. "Do you know how stupid and reckless this is?"

"Says you," Rhodes muttered under his breath.

"Platypus, go away." Tony gestured at Rhodes. "And you, go finish your homework. And if I ever catch you doing something so stupid again, I will beat you within an inch of your life!"

Even though Tony was kidding, Peter gulped anyway.


	6. The Flu (Lost, Part 1)

So this is based off a request by Xeria who wanted Pepper in Momma Bear mode and Sam and Bucky being protective uncles. While those two don't make an appearance in this chapter they will make one in Part Two!

...

Part One

Today was Friday. Meaning Peter got to go to Stark Tower, work with Mr Stark, and stay the night. He already had an overnight bag packed and stashed in his locker, ready to go. There was just one problem. Peter wasn't feeling so good. His throat was raw and his nose was running. He hoped it wouldn't be too noticeable, otherwise Mr Stark may not let him stay.

Finally, school was over, so he grabbed his stuff, said goodbye to Ned, and raced outside to the Audi where Happy sat waiting.

"Hi, Happy!" Peter said, smiling wide and wiping his nose on his shirtsleeve. Happy didn't say anything, just pulled off the curb and onto the street. Peter shrugged. He was used to this by now, so he just plugged in his earbuds and sat back for the 20-minute drive to Stark tower.

"Good afternoon, Peter. Boss is in his lab. Shall I inform him of your arrival?" F.R.I.D.A.Y., Tony's AI, greeted him.

"No, Fri, but thanks. I'll just run up there." Peter dumped his backpack on the floor by the door and shrugged off his jacket.

"Peter, your internal temperature is higher than normal, are you feeling alright?" The AI asked as Peter started to walk to Tony's lab.

"Oh, no, F.R.I.D.A.Y., I'm okay, just a little warm. Happy had the heat turned a little high today in the car." Peter scanned his id card and the elevator opened.

"If you say so, Peter."

The elevator descended down to the lower levels where Tony's personal lab was. Peter slipped open the door with a scan of his id and walked in.

"Oh, hey, Underoos," Tony called over the loud rock music blasting. "Fri, turn the music off. What's up, Pete?"

"Not much. What are we working on today?" Peter wiped his nose on his sleeve.

"Giving Karen some updates. Are you sure you're up for this? You look a little flushed," Tony pointed out.

"Nah, I'm fine," Peter said. "Just a little warm. I'll just take my sweatshirt off." Peter pulled his Midtown Tech hoodie off and tied it around his waist. "See? I'm fine."

"Okay, if you say so."

A few hours later, Peter wasn't doing so hot. Heat had overtaken him, blurring his vision. His stomach felt queasy and his nose was running down his face.

"Hey, boys, how you doing down here?" Pepper popped her head in the lab. She noticed Peter, hunched over his worktable unnaturally, breath heaving. "Peter? Are you alright?" she walked in and put a hand on his shoulder.

Peter glanced up and was about to say "I'm fine" before whirling around and throwing up his lunch into the trash can.

"Peter! Oh my gosh, are you alright? We need to get you some medical attention! Come on, honey." Pepper started to guide him towards the door, but Peter collapsed on the floor at Pepper's feet.

"Tony, bring him to the medbay!" Pepper ordered to a gobsmacked Tony who stood gaping.

"Uh, right," Tony said, bending and lifting the kid into his arms. Peter just moaned as Tony lifted him. As they bundled into the elevator, Pepper scolded.

"How could you not notice he was sick?" Pepper snapped, hands on hips. "He's hunched over his table barely breathing and you're just sitting there doing your own thing!"

"He looked flushed when he came in but I asked him if he was okay and he just said he was hot, so I figured he was okay," Tony explained.

"Men." Pepper rolled her eyes. "F.R.I.D.A.Y., get Dr Banner down here."

"Right away, ma'am."

Pepper pushed open the door to the medbay and held it open, ushering Tony inside. A few moments later Bruce Banner came careening down.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"Peter's sick," Pepper explained.

"Okay, okay, set him on the bed, Tony," Banner said, pointing to a nearby medical bed. Tony did as ordered then stepped back. Bruce felt his forehead.

"Okay, so he's got a fever. We need to cool him down. Pepper, can you get me a cold compress and some painkillers, please? There should be a compress in that freezer and ibuprofen in that cabinet."

"Yes, of course."

"Tony, help me get his clothes off. We need to cool him down." Bruce unbuttoned Peter's jeans and tugged them down. "Does he have any other symptoms?" Tony pulled the kid's shirt over his head wordlessly.

"C-old," Peter moaned, shivering.

"I know pal but we've gotta get the fever down," Bruce said.

"He threw up just before we brought him down," Pepper said, passing him the requested items. Bruce situated the compress on Peter's head. "Tony get me a thermometer, second drawer on the left."

"On it."

"Sounds like the stomach flu. He needs lots of fluids, water mainly, and rest. I'll get some antibiotics as soon as I can. As for throwing up, I can't give him ibuprofen until he's gotten something in his stomach. I'm guessing he won't eat anything right now so we'll have to hope sleep will help until morning."

Pepper nodded and Tony returned with the thermometer and passed it to Banner.

"I'll go get some water." Pepper dashed off.

"Okay, Peter, open up, I need to get your temp." Bruce turned the digital thermometer on and waited for Peter to comply. Peter refused to open his mouth, moaning.

"Okay, here's the deal, kid, you're gonna listen to Dr Banner and open your mouth or he's gonna do it the old-fashioned way," Tony threatened.

Peter didn't like the sound of that, so he opened his mouth but didn't open his eyes. Banner stuck the thermometer under his tongue, told him to close his mouth and wait until the device beeped to open again. As soon as the thermometer dinged, Peter spat it out.

"103.4. That's pretty high." Banner picked the thermometer up from the floor and noting the reading with a sigh. "Let's get some meds and fluids in him and see if that won't help."

Pepper returned with a glass of water and a straw, so a few antibiotics later, Peter was resting quietly.

...

"Okay, yes, he's sleeping now. Yes, he's fine. We'll get him home tomorrow- Oh, yeah, I'll see if I can rouse him." Tony was on the phone with Aunt May. "Pete?" Tony shook his shoulder. "May wants to check up on you, then you can go back to sleep." Tony hit the speakerphone.

"H-ello?" Peter stuttered out, his first word in a few hours.

"Hi, honey," came the voice on the other side. "Are you doing alright?"

"Yeah, May, I just picked a bug up at school. I'm fine. Dr Banner took good care of me."

"Okay, that's good. Well, I'll let you go to sleep. Just wanted to make sure you were doing alright. Love you."

"Love you too, May. Bye."

May hung up the phone. Tony ruffled Peter's hair.

"Get some sleep. I'll see you in the morning.

...

_Well, Part One is done. Sam and Bucky will make an appearance, I Promise, in Part Two. _

_I did some spotty research on the medical stuff so if I messed up on any of it please let me know!_


	7. Bad News (Lost, Part 2)

This chapter is a doozy. Get Ready.

Also, Princess Virius Potter, there's a Peter and Nat scene in this chapter. I hope you're still reading!

...

"Wakey wakey, Petey," Tony said softly, rousing Peter from his fever induced sleep. "Morning, Sunshine!"

"Hi, Mr Stark." Peter rubbed his eyes and sat up. "Ugh, I feel horrible."

"Hmm, I wonder why?" Tony asked sarcastically. Peter rolled his eyes.

"My head hurts."

"I know kid, but we've gotta get some food in you before we can give you ibuprofen. Pepper made you some soup and tea. I think its chicken and rice with lemon and chamomile tea. You can take these pain pills after you've finished the soup," Tony said gently, reaching behind him for the tray he had set down when he came in. "Also, you've got some visitors. Mind if they come in?"

Peter shook his head as he took a sip of his soup.

"Come on in, guys," Tony called back towards the door.

"Hey, man!" Sam burst into the room, followed by Bucky.

"Hey, guys!" Peter exclaimed happily. "What's going on?"

"Not much, kid," Bucky said. "How are you feeling?"

"Like crap, but better now that you're here. How's the new arm holding up, Bucky?" Peter asked, gesturing to the new prosthetic Tony had made him.

"Oh, it's great! Thanks again, Tony."

"You're welcome, Popsicle," Tony said with a smirk.

"Sam? You ready to let me try those wings out yet?" Peter asked around a spoonful of soup.

"Not a chance, kid," Sam replied with a grin. "Nobody gets to play Falcon except me."

"Wait a dang minute. Why are they Sam and Bucky and I'm Mr Stark? Do you know how many times I've told him to call me Tony?" He turned to Sam and Bucky.

"Who ever listens to you, Stark?" Sam joked. Bucky shrugged. As Tony opened his mouth for a smart remark, his phone rang. He stood up. "I'll be right back," he said, getting up and answering his phone. "Hello?" He walked out the door. "Yes, this is Tony Stark. Oh- there's been an accident? With? Oh my gosh, is she okay?" Tony sighed as involuntary tears sprung to his eyes. "Oh, she didn't..." Tony took a sharp intake of breath. "Yes, I'll tell him. Thank you for telling me. Okay, bye."

Tony hurled his phone into the wall. It shattered on impact. What was he going to tell Peter?! Leaving the mess, he turned back towards Peter's medical room. He took a deep breath. He considered asking Sam and Bucky to leave, but they needed to know too. Pushing the door open, he steeled himself for what he was about to do.

Peter was laughing at a joke Bucky had told him when Mr Stark came back in, a strange look on his face.

M-mr Stark? Are you okay?"

"Not really, kid," Tony replied, sitting down on the edge of Peter's bed. He moved Peter's empty bowl to the table beside the bed. "Peter, there's ah, there's been an accident."

"An accident?" Peter's brow furrowed. "What kind of accident?"

"There was a head-on collision, Peter. A drunk driver hit your aunt's car."

Peter paled. "Is, is, she okay?"

"She, um," Tony paused and took a breath. "She didn't make it, kid. The drunk didn't either."

Peter's eyes widened in shock. "That's not...that's not true, is it?"

"It is, buddy. I'm sorry."

Peter screamed, a loud, horrible wail, before throwing himself face first onto the bed, shoulders heaving with uncontrollable sobs. Bucky and Sam quickly slipped out, wiping away tears. Bucky patted Peter on the back before exiting the med bay. Although he didn't know it, that simple touch meant more to Peter than Bucky could ever know.

"Kid? Can I get you anything?" Tony asked, placing a hand on Peter's shoulder.

"I-i j-just need to b-be a-alone," Peter said, although it was hard to understand between sobs.

"Okay, kid, okay. I'll check on you later." Tony turned toward the door.

"W-wait, Misser St-t-tark, c-can you s-send Ag-gent Roma-romanoff?" Peter suddenly changed his mind. Nat gave good hugs.

"Yeah, kid, I'll get her," Tony replied softly. Tony quickly went up to Nat's floor. Knocking on the jamb of her open bedroom door, he walked in and solemnly explained that Peter's aunt had passed away in a car crash and was asking for her. Nat quickly nodded and bolted down to the medbay. She knocked on the door, then opened it, and saw the poor, forlorn child on the bed, heaving with body-wracking sobs.

"Oh, _puak-detka," _Nat said, coming to sit on the bed. Peter threw himself onto her lap, bawling pitifully. She just held him, tucking his head under her chin, humming softly to him. Peter's sobs finally fizzled into pitiful mewls. The front of Nat's shirt was soaked with tears and snot, but she didn't care. She just needed to be there for the kid. Finally, Peter went limp in her arms, asleep. She scooted over farther on the bed and leaned against the pillow, Peter lying on her chest. _Bless his heart, _she thought. _This must be hard. _

Tony walked into the room just then. Noticing the sleeping boy, he spoke in a softer tone.

"I just got off the phone with a social worker. They said Peter will be placed in foster care after the funeral, which is in a week and a half. For now, he can stay here."

Natasha nodded. "I'll stay here with him tonight, and we can tell him in the morning."

Tony nodded sadly. "Goodnight, Romanoff."

"Night, Stark."

...

Wow, this was a hard chapter. Also, I changed the Russian words in chapters 3 and 4 to the English pronunication so you guys would know how to read them. The next chapter will be the funeral and will be posted after chapter 3 of my new story, Go Jump in The Lake, is posted.


	8. Funeral (Lost, Part 3)

A gentle ballad played softly as the small crowd of people filed out of the sanctuary of the small church into one of the rooms for the reception. Peter and the Avengers had already walked out. Peter really wanted to leave without having to see anyone, but he knew he had to stay. His foster family was taking him home after the reception, and quite frankly, he wasn't ready. He wanted to stay with Mr Stark.

But Mr Stark hadn't suggested he stay with the Avengers permanently, and Peter hadn't asked. So for now, he was going to live with the Bells. He'd never met them, but the social worker assigned to his case had told him their names were Aaron and Kelli, and they had a 7 year old son named Isaac.

As many people came by to give him a hug or say they were sorry, Peter tried his best to pay attention, but was still recovering from the flu, so he got tired easily. Everything was just a blur of people and words. Natasha materialized by his side, holding a cup of water. Peter declined the water; his hands were to shaky to hold anything right now.

"You need some air, kid?" she asked, placing an arm around him. Peter leaned against her gratefully, nodding. She escorted him outside to a grassy area in front of the church. Peter's cheeks were flushed, so the cool evening air felt good. Peter swallowed, then pulled something from his pocket and held it tightly with quivering hands.

"I, uh, don't know when I'll see you again, my foster family kindof lives in the country, and um, homeschools, so um, yeah," Peter took a breath. "I um, made this for you. Mr Stark helped me." Peter passed her a delicate silver necklace. It had two spider charms dangling from the delicate chain.

"Oh, Peter," Natasha said. "You didn't have to."

"But I wanted too!" Peter blurted. "It's two spiders, like us."

"I love it, _puak-detka." _Natasha clipped the necklace on, situating it just below her arrow one. "Thank you," she said, giving him a hug as people began to file out of the church towards the parking lot. Tony found them quickly enough, followed by the rest of the Avengers. One by one, they said their goodbyes. Peter replied sadly, and hugged one or two of them. Pepper gave him a big hug and kiss. Tony was last.

"Hey, buddy. Let's go get your stuff from my car, shall we?" Tony slung an arm around Peter's shoulders and walked him to the Audi. Opening the trunk, they grabbed Peter's few belongings he had decided to bring with him. When they had cleaned out his and May's apartment, most of May's things had been donated, except for a few photo albums, which Peter had kept. Peter had taken that time to go through his things as well. He had donated a lot, and some had been moved to his room in Avengers tower. The clothes he had kept with him fit into one suitcase and one backpack, his Spider Suit buried underneath. Another backpack, a Stark Industries one Tony had given him, was filled with his half-built or half-repaired electronics, a sketchpad and a few books. Peter shouldered one backpack and held the other, then grabbed his suitcase. "Let me help, Pete," Tony said, grabbing the suitcase. "Let's go back up to the church."

As they walked back towards the entrance, the social worker, Jill, joined them.

"Hi, Peter," Jill said. Peter nodded in acknowledgment. "Your foster family is here. Shall we go meet them?"

Peter shrugged sadly. All he wanted to do was stay with Mr Stark and the Avengers.

A family of four approached them. "Peter?"

Peter nodded.

"Hi, we're the Bells. I'm Aaron, this is Kelli, this little guy here is Isaac. I'm so sorry to hear about your aunt." The man reached out to shake Peter's hand. He looked to be around 35 years old, and about 6 feet tall. He had brown hair in a crew cut and friendly green eyes. Kelli looked about 29, and had blonde hair and blue eyes. She was around 5 feet 4 inches tall. Isaac was perfect mix of his parents, with blonde hair and green eyes.

"You're Tony Stark!" The little kid exclaimed in awe.

"Uh, yeah," Tony said, rubbing the back of his year.

"I saw you in my science book at home!" Isaac replied.

"Um, that's nice, kid," Tony said.

"Isaac, stop bugging Mr Stark."

"Sorry, Papa."

"Well, we can get your stuff loaded in the van, then we can be off. We've got a long drive ahead of us." Kelli said. "It was nice meeting you, Mr Stark." The family turned to leave.

"Wait!" Peter blurted. "I'd like Tony to walk me to your car," he said, clutching his backpack to his chest. He glanced up at his mentor.

"Alright, that'll be fine," Aaron said. Tony's eyes welled with tears. The kid had finally called him Tony! Letting Pete go was going to be hard. He pulled his kid close and squeezed his shoulder, following after the small family. They arrived at a beat up dark blue minivan with rust in the wheel wells.

"This is different from the Audis I'm used to," Peter muttered to Tony, who nodded in agreement. Aaron popped the trunk and the guys loaded Peter's bags in.

"Ready, gang?" Aaron asked, walking round to open the door for Isaac. The boy quickly buckled into his seat. Peter hadn't moved a muscle, staying tight to Tony's side.

"Can, can I have a minute with Mr Stark?" Peter asked hesitantly.

"Of course, Peter," Kelli said kindly. "We'll wait in the van."

"Thanks."

Once the family was in the car, Peter turned to Tony and threw himself at his mentor.

"I don' wanna go! I don' wanna go!" he cried into Tony's chest.

"I know, buddy, I know." Tony held the kid close. "Hey, I have something for you." Tony reached into his pocket and pulled out a pair of glasses. "I've uploaded Karen into these so you can still have her around without wearing your mask. Also, you can tell her to call me. Anytime, anywhere, I'll come get you."

Peter took the glasses gratefully, tucking them in his hoodie pocket. He gave the man one last hug before turning and climbing into the backseat of the van beside Isaac. The door closed behind him, and the van pulled out of the parking lot, leaving a forlorn Tony Stark in the dust.

...

"Peter? Would you like a granola bar to hold you over? We'll stop for McDonald's in about an hour," Kelli said, holding up the cereal bar.

"You should have one, Pete!" Isaac exclaimed around a mouthful of his own. "They're super yummy!"

"No, that's okay. I'm not hungry." Peter turned away, flinching when Isaac called him Pete. Only Mr Stark was allowed to call him that. Peter reached into the Stark Industries backpack he had kept with him and pulled out a pair of red and blue bluetooth headphones Tony had made him. He quickly pulled them on and turned the volume up so he wouldn't have to listen to Isaac's constant chatter.

When the family stopped for dinner, Peter refused anything, just leaned his head against the window and continued to listen to music. It had become dark when the family finally pulled up to the farmhouse in the country. Peter could just make out an outbuilding a little ways past the house, but that was all he could see.

"I've gotta go bring the horses in, guys, and then I'll bring Peter's bags up to the house," Aaron said as he turned off the car.

"Oh no, that's okay, I've got it." Peter said. He waited until Isaac got out of the car before hopping out, opening the trunk and grabbing his stuff. _They have horses? Jill didn't tell me that._

"Come on in, Pete," Kelli said, unlocking the front door to the small farmhouse. "Pete, your room is just down that hallway, second one to the right. Bathroom is across the hall. I'll let you get settled in."

"Wait, don't go to the bathroom, I gotta go!" Isaac pushed passed them and darted down the hall.

Peter nodded solemnly, his headphones still firmly fixed to his head. He didn't like that everyone was calling him Pete, but he'd have to address that tomorrow. He headed down the hall and found his room easily enough. It was plain. Grey walls, grey carpet, a maplewood dresser in one corner, a twin bed in another, and a desk and chair against the wall near the door. He closed the door, dumped his bags on the floor, and collapsed on the bed, shoes and all, and cried himself to sleep.

When Kelli came to tell Peter it was lights out, he was already asleep. She slipped his shoes off and covered him with a blanket.

"Things will get better, Pete. I promise."

...

I promise it will get better! I understand you guys want him to live with Tony, but I have a plan for this story. It'll all pan out.


	9. Only One Person (Lost, Part 4)

Saturday came bright and early.

"Peter, time to wake up! I need your help at the barn, so get up and get dressed Long pants and boots if you've got 'em!" Aaron opened the door to his bedroom. Peter groaned and looked at the clock. 6 am. That wasn't too different from normal, but it still felt wrong. he rolled out of bed. He didn't want to get in trouble the first day with the Bells. He didn't have boots, so he hoped his tennis shoes would do. He slipped his glasses on.

"Karen?"

"Good morning, Peter. How can I be of assistance?"

"I just need some company. I'm sure Mr Stark updated you of the situation."

"Yes, Peter. I'm terribly sorry for your loss."

"Thanks, Karen."

"Good morning, Pete," Kelli said when he emerged. "Breakfast will be ready in a little while, but the horses always come first around here. Mr Bell's already down at the barn, just head down the path."

"Okay," Peter said quietly, opening the door and walking out into the cool morning air. He walked slowly down the path towards the barn. That must've been the outbuilding he'd seen last night. "Mr Bell?" he called as he walked into the open barn. 4 heads poked out of stall windows, staring at him.

"Yeah, Pete," Aaron stepped into his line of vision. He glanced at Peter's choice of footwear. "No boots?"

"No, sir."

"We'll have to get some for you. For now, just watch your feet."

"Yes, sir."

"Around here, the horses come first. Come on over and meet them." he beckoned to Peter and walked up to the first stall. A grey quarter horse stood inside, with curious eyes. "This here's Tax. He's my horse. Hold your hand out, and let him sniff you. There, that's it," Aaron encouraged when Peter did as asked. He noticed each stall had a nameplate with the horse's name and breed.

"And over across the way, this here's Pepsi," Aaron pointed. A tall chestnut Oldenburg stuck her head out the window of her stall. Peter allowed her to sniff his hand. "And this little guy is Jethro. He's Isaac's pony."

Peter peered inside. A fat, shaggy brown American Shetland Pony stared back at him.

"And this guy, he's our new boy. He doesn't have a name yet."

A palomino sabino Thoroughbred with blue eyes stuck his head out the window in his stall.

"He's a rescue from a farm a little ways from here. He's a real goofball.," Mr Bell said with a chuckle as the horse nibbled at Peter's hair. He giggled without meaning too.

"He's nice," Peter said.

"Well, I'm glad you like him. He's going to be yours while you stay here, so feel free to name him."

"What?" Peter asked. He wasn't expecting to have a horse!

"Yup, he's yours. You get to know each other. I've gotta go get Isaac. He's supposed to be down here helping." Mr Bell muttered, quickly walking out towards the house. Once Peter was sure he was gone, he contacted Karen.

"Karen?"

"Yes, Peter?"

"Can you give me a rundown on this horse?"

"Sure, Peter. He is a 7 year old Thoroughbred, previously called Ranger by his former owners. He stands 15 hands tall, approximately 60 inches or 5 feet tall. He is palomino in color and has Sabino markings. That's the white splash marks on his belly, legs, and face. His sire was Rooster and his dam was Stripes. He is harness trained and saddle trained, and can-"

"Okay, okay, that's all I need to know. Thanks, Karen. How do you even know all this?"

"You're quite welcome, Peter. Mr Stark was extremely thorough when designing my software."

"Pete? You ready to help us feed these guys?" Mr Bell came back down, Isaac in tow.

"Hey, cool glasses, Pete!" Isaac shouted.

"Thanks. Um, yeah," Peter said hesitantly.

"Do ya like your horse, Pete?" Isaac asked.

"Yeah, I do."

"You got a name yet?" Aaron asked.

"Spider," Peter said, saying the first thing that popped into his head. The spatter marks on the horse's sides reminded him of spider webs.

"Spider. Hmm. I like it," Aaron said. "Okay, come on to the grain room. We gotta get these horses fed. So, Pete, this whiteboard tells what horse gets what amount of food." Aaron quickly erased "Thoroughbred" on the board and rewrote "Spider". "Spider gets two scoops of Grow 'n Win and one scoop of Ultimate Finish. Grow 'n Win is in the black tub, and Ultimate Finish is in the grey tub." Mr Bell pointed out the correct bins of grain. "This here's his bucket, the blue one. All the horses' gear is color coded. Tax is red, Pepsi is purple, Jethro is green, and Spider is blue."

Peter nodded. "So do you want me to feed him now?"

"Yes, that's right."

Peter grabbed the blue bucket from his foster father and opened the grain bins, quickly dishing up the correct amount of grain.

"Just open the door and slip in. His grain bin is attached to the wall. You'll see it. He's real gentle, wouldn't hurt a fly."

Peter nodded. He wasn't really scared, he'd dealt with bigger things than Spider before.

"I'll feed Jethro now!" Isaac shouted enthusiastically, grabbing a green bucket from the floor. Peter cringed. Isaac was loud, and annoying. Peter slipped out and went to his new horse, leaving the 7 year old behind.

"Hey, Spider. I'm Peter." Peter quickly unlatched the door and slipped in, spotting the grain bin. He emptied the bucket and allowed the horse to eat his breakfast. He watched the gentle giant for a moment as he ate his grain. Peter heard Mr Bell call for him, so he slipped out after patting the horse on the shoulder, latching the stall door behind him. He met Isaac and Mr Bell back in the grain room. He put his bucket back with the others.

"Ready for breakfast, boys? We'll turn the horses out after we eat."

"I'm starved!" Isaac proclaimed loudly, heading back for the house.

Peter nodded in agreement and followed the little boy.

Breakfast was a hearty meal of French toast and oatmeal, with orange juice and strawberries. Peter ate in silence, then glanced at his watch. It was almost 7. School was starting in a half hour. Peter was finishing the school year via Midtown Tech online courses, then he would switch to homeschooling the next year. Assuming he stayed with the Bells that long.

"Okay, Pete, so your classes start in a bit, so we gotta get down to the barn and finish chores." Mr Bell stood and walked his empty plate to the sink, rinsed it, and put it in the dishwasher. Peter silently followed suit then shoved his shoes on his feet "So, Pete-"

"Please don't call me that," Peter blurted. "There's only one person who gets to call me that, and you're not it!" Peter snapped, turning and scrubbing the tears welled in his eyes from his face. He bolted out of the house, and down the dirt road, streaking out of sight.

Aaron took off down to the barn, tossed saddles over Tax and Spider, bridled them with practiced ease and mounted Tax, ponying the other horse behind him. He took off down the road after the lost boy.


	10. A Talk With Mr Stark (Lost, Part 5)

_**A Talk With Mr Stark**_

Peter dashed down the road, tears streaming from his eyes, blurring his vision. He tripped over a rock in the dirt road, fell, ripped his jeans and skinned his knee. The pain was nothing. He hated the Bells. He hated the house. He hated Isaac. He wanted to go home. Home was Mr Stark and the tower. Home was being Spider-Man, and home was the Avengers.

Hoofbeats sounded dully behind him, and Peter whirled around. Mr Bell was following him atop Tax. He pulled up his horse behind them and tossed Spider's reins to Peter.

"Get on. We're going home. We'll talk about this later." Mr Bell's voice was low and deadly.

Peter wordlessly climbed into Spider's saddle and reluctantly trotted after the man. Once they were back at the house, Peter ran inside to his bedroom and slammed and locked the door. He refused to come out all day. Mrs Bell tried to talk to him, and left him meals outside his room. Peter didn't eat a thing. It was hours before he finally stopped crying and opened his group chat.

Peter: i cant do it guys. i wanna come home

Ned: I dont kno what to tell ya dude. i want u 2 come back 2. have u asked mr stark about it?

Peter: no

MJ: u should

Peter: i might msg him 2nite. i dont know what to say tho

MJ: its 11 at night. do u think hes even awake?

Peter: yeah he prolly is. his sleep schedule is messed up

MJ: oh

Ned: tell him u dont like it there

MJ: or just talk to him

Peter: thx guys. ill try. nite.

Ned: let us know how it goes.

Peter: ok

Peter tossed his phone to the side and reached into his backpack, withdrawing his laptop, he hesitantly opened up Skype.

"Hey, kid." Tony answered almost immediately. He was obviously in his workshop, tinkering with whatever was his project at the moment.

"Hi," Peter replied.

"Hey, you see something wrong with this?" Tony turned his screen towards one of the virtual blueprints in his lab.

"Um," Peter squinted. "Yeah, that power converter on the left is twisted. It's not sending its full power to the core."

"Oh, yeah. Good job kid." Tony turned the screen back to him. "Dum-e, put that down!" Tony shouted at the robot out of view. A clatter sounded in the background. "Gosh, that robot is going to be the death of me."

Peter smiled a little.

"So, Pete, how's life?" Tony pulled the goggles on his head down and soldered something on his project, smoke rising.

"It sucks," Peter replied flatly.

"That bad, huh?" Tony set his solderer down and grabbed a wrench.

"Their kid drives me off the wall and I don't know, I'm just not happy. I want to come home."

...

"I'm just not happy. I want to come home."

Tony set his wrench down with a thud. _Ouch, that hurt. And where _is _home for you, kid?_

"Well, uh, is there anything that makes you happy there?"

"I have a horse," Peter replied, a small smile lit up his face more than it had been all day. "His name is Spider."

"Hey, kid that's cool." Tony smiled a little. He didn't know much about horses, but whatever made his kid happy was fine with him.

"Yeah, it kinda is. You wanna see him?" Peter asked, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. Tony's view of the boy shook at the sudden movement.

"It's dark out," Tony pointed out, lifting his wrench once again.

"That's okay. The barn has lights." Tony's view of Peter became wobbly as the boy got out of bed and stood up.

...

Peter picked up his laptop and slipped on his shoes. As quietly is he could he slipped into the hallway and out the door into the night.

"Sorry, we'll be in the dark for a sec," Peter mumbled, gentle wind muffling his words.

Peter trotted down to the barn and flicked on the light. Pepsi gave a startled snort, tossing her head. She stick her head out of her stall window to see what was going on.

"Easy girl, it's just me." Peter walked down the aisle, grabbed his horse's halter and opened Spider's stall. He flipped the camera's view. "What do you think?" he asked Tony, setting the laptop on the floor and slipped the halter over his head, just in case something happened. Spider was laying down, clearly having been asleep.

"He's cool, kid," Tony said. "You ridden him yet?"

"Just a little. Maybe I'll ride more tomorrow." Peter shrugged.

They talked well into the night, Tony showing Peter what he was working on and Peter helping him improve it, until Pepper came down and sent Tony to bed with a swat to the rear-end. "You were supposed to be in bed 2 hours ago."

"But Pepper!" Tony whined. She silenced him with a glare. "Okay, kid, I have to go. You heard the warden." Pepper smacked his thigh. "Ouch!"

"Goodnight, Peter. It was good to see you even just for a minute," Pepper said with a warm smile.

"You too, Miss Potts," Peter replied with a sad smile. Tony hung up as were orders of Pepper, and Peter stared at the blank screen of his laptop for a long while until Spider nosed it out of his lap and laid his head in its place. Peter smiled and stroked the horse's nose.

Peter glanced at his digital watch. 2 am, woah. He should get to bed too. He was still in the barn however, cuddled up against Spider. Spider had his huge head in Peter's lap, and he was so warm. He decided to stay the night in the barn. The Bells would find him easily enough in the morning.


	11. A Very Special Visit (Lost Part 6)

_2 chapters in one day, what?! Yeah, maybe I was feeling a bit bad about the last one..._

_**A Very Special Visit**_

A month had passed since Peter was first taken in by the Bells. No one spoke of the day Peter ran off or spent the night in the barn. All was well with the Bells, but not so much for Peter. He didn't talk at all, and ate less. He was losing weight and you could see his ribs. It was all Kelli could do to get him to eat. He had finished off the school year with poor grades.

Kelli and Aaron had talked about whether they were right for Peter, or if counseling was an option. They'd talk to him about it at dinner. Then Kelli had an idea that she knew Peter would love. She pulled out her phone. She had a call to make.

Peter sat on his bed in his room, listening to Ned talk about the end of the year party at school on his laptop via Skype.

"Are you gonna say anything, dude?" Ned asked. Peter just shrugged, then held up his finger in a wait motion. He grabbed his laptop and slipped out of the house.

"Peter, where are you going?" Aaron asked from the kitchen, where he was helping make dinner. Peter pointed forlornly to the barn. "Okay. But dinner's in a half-hour. Don't be late. Oh, and Peter? Will you do chores while you're down there?"

Peter nodded and shoved his feet into the steel-toed work boots that had been bought for him, then trotted out the door, laptop cradled in his hands. He went down to the barn, and set his laptop down on the counter. He gave the "wait" motion to Ned again and grabbed Spider's halter from his stall door, then trotted out to the field and collected his horse, bringing him into the barn and clipping him into the crossties in the aisle. Peter grabbed his laptop from where he had set it and flipped the camera's view.

"Dude!" Ned exclaimed. "He's awesome!" Peter gave him a huge grin. Spider was one of the only things that brought him real joy. He'd left the rest of it back home at Avengers Tower. He took his laptop with him to the grain room and measured out grain for the horses. Peter heard Ned's mom call him from the background.

"Well, dude, I gotta go. Call me when you can, and maybe talk next time?"

Peter smiled and shrugged as Ned hung up. Chores were finished in a timely manner, the horses brought in and fed before Peter headed up to his own dinner.

"So, Peter?" Kelli asked as Peter pushed around the pile of mashed potatoes on his plate. "We were wondering if you wanted to go visit Mr Stark tomorrow?"

Peter's eyes lit up and welled with tears. He nodded vigorously, his curly, uncombed hair slapping against his forehead.

"On one condition," Aaron said. "You have to eat all your dinner."

Peter started shoving food into his mouth so fast his foster parents thought he would choke.

Aaron chuckled. "Slow down, Peter."

Peter gave an apologetic smile around a mouthful of chicken.

"Do I get ta go see Mista Stark too?" Isaac asked around a mouthful of bread.

"Don't talk with your mouth full, Isaac," Kelli admonished. "And no, just Peter and Daddy are going, okay?"

"Okay, I guess," Isaac replied, a little glumly.

...

Peter was up at 5 and was down at the barn at 5:15. He easily did chores by himself, then ran back up and put his jeans on and his favorite Stark Industries t-shirt. He slid his Karen glasses on his face and greeted her.

"So glad to hear you speak again," Karen said. Peter smiled, then trotted out to the kitchen, sliding his phone in his back pocket. He grabbed a few eggs from the fridge and some toast from the pantry and set about making breakfast for him and Mr Bell.

Aaron awoke to the sound of clattering utensils in the kitchen, so he kissed his wife goodbye and dressed quickly.

"What are you doing, Peter?" he asked as he walked out into the kitchen, tightening his belt around his waist.

"I made breakfast," he replied happily, setting plates of eggs and toast on the table. Aaron's eyes lit up at the sound of Peter's voice. He hadn't said a word in almost a month.

"Thanks, buddy. Chores done?"

Peter nodded. Aaron sat down. "You didn't have to do that," he said.

"I wanted too! The faster we get stuff done the faster we can leave!" Peter sat down and began to shove eggs and toast into his mouth as fast as he could. He served himself a second helping while Mr Bell finished his first, and then Peter hurriedly ran his dishes to the sink.

"Can we go?" Peter said, dashing to the door and tugging red and grey high tops on his feet. Aaron chuckled as he rinsed his plate.

"Okay, buddy, yeah, go get in the van." Mr Bell said as he tugged on his shoes. Peter ran out the door and started the van.

The whole 2-hour car ride into New York City Peter was bouncing with excitement, chattering about what him and Mr Stark were going to upgrade. Aaron laughed at the boy's enthusiasm. It was so good to see him so happy. When they arrived at the tower, Peter shouldered his backpack containing his Spider-suit and hopped out.

"I'll pick you up around 5'o'clock, alright? Then we'll grab dinner and head home."

"Okay." Peter hung his red and blue ID badge around his neck and started for the door.

"Welcome back, Peter. It's been a while." Aaron jumped as the bodiless voice greeted the boy.

"Hi F.R.I.D.A.Y.!" Peter shouted happily, seemingly knowing what this voice was."This is F.R.I.D.A.Y., Mr Bell. She's Mr Stark's AI."

"Ah, okay."

"Fri, where's Mr Stark?"

"Coming down the stairs as you speak!" A triumphant voice called out.

"Mr Stark!" Peter shrieked, slamming into the man so hard he knocked the wind out of him. Happy tears soaked Tony's shirt as sobs wracked Peter's body. Tony's heart broke and it was at that moment that Tony knew that he needed this kid and this kid needed him.

"Hey, kid, it's all right," Tony soothed, rubbing the kid's back. Aaron ducked out with a respectful wave at Tony.

"I've missed you," Peter mumbled into Mr Stark's shirt.

"Yeah, me too, bud. You've got some others who want to see you," he said, tugging Peter back from his chest, and setting a hand on his shoulder.

"Uh, sorry," Peter said, gesturing to Tony's wet shirt.

"Don't worry about it." Tony waved a hand dismissively and ushered the boy upstairs to the Avengers common room. "C'mon, let's go."

"Peter!" Two familiar voices made their way to Peter's ears.

"Sam! Bucky!" Peter was swept up into a huge bear hug by the two soldiers and nearly crushed.

"Okay, okay, you're going to smash him," a female's voice said now. Peter squirmed loose and fell into a hug from Natasha.

"Hello, _puak-deytka," _she whispered tenderly into his ear.

"Hi, Nat," he whispered back.

"Okay, Romanoff, my turn." Steve grabbed the kid and hugged him. Wanda was next, then's Thor's bone-crushing arms surrounded him, then Clint jumped on him from the vents above, Rhodey tousled his hair, and Banner got the last hug.

"Okay, guys, let him breathe," a woman's voice came over the chatter of 9 Avengers.

"Hi Miss Potts!" Peter said as he was swept into an embrace and kissed on the forehead by a very familiar redhead.

"Okay, guys, time for me and Pete to get to the lab." Tony pushed through the crowd and headed down to his lab. Peter trotted after him like a puppy, grabbing his hand and holding tight. The hours went by so fast. They had given Peter's suit and upgrade, tweaked Tony's arc-reactor and trained with the other Avengers. They'd had pizza for lunch, and then it was back down to the lab.

"I could go for a snack. What about you, kid?" It was around 3'o'clock.

"Can we have cinnamon toast?" Peter asked. Tony chuckled. Cinnamon toast was their go-to late-night sneak-into-the-kitchen snack.

"Of course we can." Tony ruffled the kid's hair. It wasn't late, but he'd definitely allow it. "C'mon, let's go."

...

"So, buddy, how are you?" Tony said as he sprinkled cinnamon sugar on two pieces of toast. Peter shrugged as he sat down on the bar stool at the counter.

"You don't look great. You're way too skinny."

"I, um, haven't been eating much lately." Peter cringed and looked down at his knees.

"That is not acceptable," Tony scolded, sliding a plate across the counter. "You have to eat even if you don't feel like it."

Peter nodded sullenly, biting into his toast.

Tony glanced at his watch. "Anyhow, we have about 2 hours before you have to go. How about we watch a movie with the rest of the team?"

Peter nodded enthusiastically, shoving the rest of his toast into his mouth.

"Fri, call the team to the common room," Tony ordered as he popped 3 huge bags of popcorn into each of the 3 microwaves in the large shared kitchen while Peter mixed two large pitchers of red Kool-aid.

"Yes, sir."

"What movie, kid?" Tony asked.

"Empire Strikes Back?" Peter asked sheepishly.

"Fine by me," Tony replied.

Soon, everyone had a cup of Kool-aid and a bowl of freshly popped and buttered popcorn and were gathered on the floor in a huge nest of blankets that Clint had made, snuggled in front of the tv. As the opening credits of Star Wars Episode 5 rolled, Peter snuggled into Tony's side and rested his head on his mentor's shoulder. He had his fingers entwined with Pepper's, who was on the other side of him. _Why couldn't things be this way all the time? _Natasha tugged her phone out of her pocket and snapped a picture.

_..._

It was 11 at night. Pepper had forced Tony to go lay down while she finished up some work she had. As Tony lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, he couldn't help but feel bad for the kid. Not to mention himself. He missed Peter's visits to the lab, his energetic personality and his amazing mind. He got out of bed and pulled a shirt on. Padding out to the living room, he spotted Pepper on the couch, illuminated by the glow of her laptop screen.

"Pep?" he asked, sliding onto the couch next to her.

"You're supposed to be in bed," Pepper murmured, typing away at her keyboard.

"I can't sleep."

"Oh."

"Pep, I need the kid," Tony said abruptly. "And I think he needs me. He told me he's not happy there."

"I was hoping you'd say that," Pepper replied, closing her laptop and turning to face her fiancé.

"You- you were? I'm talking about adoption, Pep," Tony stuttered, surprised. "I wanted to check with you cause, with the wedding coming soon and all..." Tony trailed off, fingering the ring on Pepper's hand.

"Yes, I was. I want Peter as much as you do. I was just waiting for your to make your move." Pepper laid her head on Tony's shoulder.

"Okay, okay, are we gonna do this?" Tony asked, excitedly.

"As long as you want to," Pepper said.

"Oh, yes, yes I do." Tony nodded adamantly.

"I'll contact the social worker in the morning and get the adoption papers set up," Pepper replied, standing up.

"Can't you do it now?" Tony whined, getting to his feet.

"They're not open, Tony. Go back to bed."

"Okay," Tony's shoulders slumped.

"Peter will be ours before we know it," Pepper said, kissing her fiance before sending him back to bed.

...

Here you go, have a 2,000 word chapter that ends good to make up for the crappy one before this.


	12. Let's Go Home (Lost, Finale)

Here's this chapter cause I didn't want to leave you on a cliffhanger too much. Not sure when next chapter will be out cause I need to catch up on some of my other stories first.

_**Let's Go Home**_

Tony sat fidgeting in the extra chair of Pepper's office, listening intently to her conversation with the social worker. Pepper finished her converstation and hung up the phone. She glanced at him, eyebrow raised.

"Settle down and sit still," she said.

"I can't. What did they say?" Tony asked, knee bouncing, eyes hopeful.

"They said adoption would be fine, as long as Peter was okay with it." Pepper leaned back in her chair and clicked a pen.

"Oh, I know he's fine with it," Tony said definitely.

"That's what I told them. An agent is on their way over right now to get the paperwork filled out." Pepper stood up and tossed the pen in her hand on her desk. "The Bells have been notified that an adopter had been found, and they have let Peter know."

"Okay," Tony said, standing up and gathering Pepper into his arms. "Have I ever told you how much I love you?"

Pepper giggled.

"Sir, the social worker is here. Shall I let him in?" F.R.I.D.A.Y. interrupted their kiss.

"Sure, Fri. Send 'em up here," Tony replied, unable to hide the excitement in his voice.

Many signatures later, it was official. Peter was theirs. Now they just had to go get him. After the social worker left, Tony leapt into the air.

"He's ours, Pep!"

"Yes, indeed," Pepper replied.

...

Peter was in the arena atop Spider, having a last ride before he went home with his new family, when a very familiar sleek silver Audi pulled up. _It couldn't be. Was it? It was!_

Peter leapt off his horse and jumped over the fence, running up to greet the man with a hug as he exited his car. Tony was wearing jeans, black and orange high tops, and an AC/DC shirt with a suit jacket pulled over it in an attempt to look official.

"Mr Stark? What are you doing here?" Peter asked. Pepper, dressed in a business suit, and surprisingly flats instead of heels, and looking as official as ever, got out of the car. "And Miss Potts? What are guys doing here?"

"We came to take our son home," Tony said, pulling an official looking document from the car and showing it to him.

"Your son? That's an adoption form! Wait, you mean- you're the ones - seriously?!" Peter was at a loss for words.

"That means you can call me Dad," Tony said, side-arm hugging his new kid.

"And me Mom," Pepper said, coming around to his other side. Peter's smile was huge as he buried his head in the woman's chest, tears leaking onto her suit jacket.

"Okay, Mom," he said. He pulled away.

"Kid, I want to say sorry for not doing this before. We should've adopted you right off the bat, I was just so confused and I didn't have the nerve, and I didn't know if you'd want me and-"

"Mr Stark. Dad. It's okay. I'm just glad you're here now!"

"Really?"

Peter nodded and hugged the man again."Hey, can you come see my horse real quick? I sorta, uh, left him in the arena," Peter said, taking his new parents by the hands. He jumped over the fence and collected the reins of Spider, who had calmly waited for his master to return.

"He's real nice, Pete," Tony said as Spider sniffed him, then proceeded to sneeze on the man. "Yeah, real nice," Tony repeated, scrubbing slobber from his face. Pepper laughed and pet the horse on the nose.

"Well, come on, come down to the barn with me. Mr Bell's down there." Peter opened the gate and led the horse and his new parents down to the barn. "Mr Bell?" Peter called as he hooked a halter around Spider's neck, clipping him into the crossties.

"In Tax's stall, Peter. Treating his Scratches!"

"Okay. Come on," he led Pepper and Tony to the stall. "Mr Bell, my new parents are here," he said quietly.

"Oh, that's right, I forgot you were coming so soon." Aaron stood up and shook Tony's hand. "Mr Stark."

"Mr Bell." Tony returned the handshake.

"Wait, you knew?!" Peter asked Mr Bell. "You knew they were adopting me?"

"Yes, Peter," Mr Bell chuckled. "We wanted it to be a surprise. Now go untack Spider so you can get out of here."

"Okay," Peter said, ducking out and back to his horse. He deflty unbuckled the bridle and slipped the halter around the horse's neck over his nose, then undid the cinch on the saddle, slipping it off his back easily enough. After rinsing the bit, he put away the tack and returned to his horse.

"Mom, Dad," he said, "come here."

Pepper and Tony came to the boy, and he showed them how to brush down the horse and clean his feet. After, Peter turned Spider out into the field with Jethro and Pepsi. "My bags are already packed," Peter said. "We just have to go up to the house."

"You go on up, Peter. I'll be in in a moment," Mr Bell called from his horse's stall.

"Okay," Peter said as he led his new family up to the house.

...

"Bye Peter," Kelli said, giving the boy a quick hug.

"Bye, Mrs Bell. Thanks for everything."

"Bye, Peter." Aaron tousled the kid's hair. "You come by anytime. Spider'll be here for you."

Peter nodded. "Okay."

"Bye Peta!" Isaac shouted, hugging his leg. Peter laughed as he returned the hug. Maybe he'd miss the kid. Just a little.

With one last wave, Peter went out the door and hopped into the backseat of the silver Audi and grinned at his new parents.

"Let's go home," he said.

"Yes, let's," Pepper agreed as Tony started the car and headed down the driveway.

"Dad, can we get a dog?"

Tony laughed. "One step at a time, champ."

...

I have no idea how adoption works and I wrote this instead of writing the book report I was supposed to be writing, so I didn't do research. If anyone knows how it works tell me and I'll change it.

And you horse people will know what scratches are :D

**Also: The next chapter will be the wedding. I need to know if Pepper has any close female friends in like the Ironman movies or something? I've never seen them, so I wouldn't know.**


	13. Good Day For Marrying You

**A Good Day For Marrying You**

Finally, the day had come.

"Stop worrying," Natasha said as she gently pinned the veil and set the crown of pale purple and white roses atop Pepper's head.

"I can't help it," Pepper replied, taking her bouquet from Wanda as Natasha stepped off her stepstool and straightened her dress.

"You'll be fine," Wanda said as Natasha fitted Wanda for her flower crown.

"I know, but I'm nervous anyway," Pepper said, slipping her feet out of the slippers she was wearing. All the girls at the wedding would go barefoot, per Pepper's request. "I'm not making anyone stand up there for any amount of time in heels," she had said.

"I was too, but once you're up there, it all goes away," Laura Barton said as she zipped up the back of her daughter's dress. Pepper gave a thankful smile.

Maria came out of the dressing room, clad in the light purple sundress the bridesmaids wore, kicking off the dollar store flip flops she wore on her feet.

"Maria, lose the..." Natasha made a circling motion around her ear.

"Oh, right." Maria tugged her earpiece from her ear and tossed it on a nearby table and donned her flower crown. "Force of habit."

"Lila, hold still," Laura ordered from the corner, where she was trying to finish her daughter's hair.

"It hurts, Momma," the 6-year-old replied, wriggling in her mother's grasp.

"Hold still! You'll wrinkle your dress!"

"Let me help," Natasha said, walking over and taking the ribbons from Laura's hands. "You go finish getting ready." Laura passed her a grateful look, then went to find her flowers. Natasha deftly and painlessly braided Lila's hair, then slipped the wreath of flowers on her head.

"Thanks, Auntie Nat," Lila said, grabbing her basket of rose petals.

"You're welcome sweetheart."

A knock sounded at the door and Steve poked his head in.

"Well don't you gals look gorgeous. Are you ready? The music's started."

Pepper nodded, giving one last look at everyone. Steve offered her his arm as the girls filed out ahead of him.

...

Peter could hardly wait. Today Pepper would become his real mom and they'd be a happy family. His adoption papers were made out to Tony and Pepper could only legally become his mom once Tony and Pepper were married. He gave a nervous and excited huff as the wedding march began to play.

In front of him, Tony fiddled with his tie as he stood up on the small stage erected near the water of their brand new Georgia lake house. Rhodey and Happy stood next to and a little behind him as his Best Men, then Peter, Clint, and Fury as his Groomsmen. Banner had opted out of the wedding, just in case there was an "incident", joining the audience instead. The music had started, and down came the bridesmaids, Laura, Wanda, and Maria. They were beautiful in their light purple sundresses and French braids, and the flower wreaths. Next came the Maid of Honor, Natasha. Then little Lila Barton, scattering flower petals in her wake. And then Pepper.

Tony gasped. She was even more beautiful than he had remembered. Her eyes sparked as she turned down the aisle, hanging on Steve's arm. Time seemed to go in slow motion as Pepper walked towards him. Her backless, lace dress swung freely around her ankles, showing her bare feet. Her hair was down, flowing around her shoulders. The elegant veil cascaded down her back in sheer ripples. She carried a pale purple and white bouquet of roses that matched the corsage in his buttonhole. She and Steve arrived at the stage and paused as the pastor began the ceremony.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered together here in the presence of God and this company to join Anthony Edward Stark and Virginia Potts in the holy bonds of matrimony. If anyone should have reason that they should not be wed, speak now or forever hold your peace."

Silence.

"Who is it that gives this woman to this man?"

"Me," Steve replied, letting go of Pepper's arm and allowing her to step up on stage. She passed her bouquet to Natasha and stood next to Tony.

"Are you, Steven Grant Rogers, willing now and always to support and strengthen this marriage by upholding both Virginia and Anthony with your love, your concern, your counsel, and your prayers?"

"I am," Steve stated.

"Thank you, you may be seated."

Steve sat down in the front row of chairs and smiled at the couple. The minister turned to Pepper and Tony.

"If therefore, it be your desire to be united in this holy bond, will you signify that fact by joining your right hands."

Pepper and Tony grabbed each others hands and held tight.

"Do you, Anthony Edward Stark, take this woman whose hand you now hold, to be your true and wedded wife; and do you solemnly promise before God and these witnesses to love, cherish, honor, and protect her: to forsake all others for her sake; to cleave unto her, and her only, until death shall part you?

"I do," Tony said adamantly.

"And do you, Virginia Potts, take this man who now holds your hand, to be your true and wedded husband; and do you solemnly promise before God and these witnesses to love, cherish, honor, and protect him: to forsake all others for his sake; to cleave unto him and him only, and him forever until death shall part you?

"I do," Pepper said with a smile.

"Anthony, repeat after me: I, Anthony Edward Stark, take you, Virginia Potts to be my wedded wife..."

"I, Anthony Edward Stark, take you, Pepper Potts, to be my wedded wife." Tony gave Pepper a cocky wink when he swapped names.

". . . to have and to hold. . ."

"To have and to hold,"

"...from this day forward . . ."

"From this day forward."

"...for better or worse . . ."

"For better or worse."

"...for richer, for poorer..."

"For richer, for poorer."

"...in sickness and in health..."

"In sickness and in health."

"...till death do us part..."

"Till death do us part."

"...and thereto I pledge my faithfulness."

"And thereto I pledge my faithfulness," Tony said with a definite nod.

The minister turned to Pepper and repeated the vow to her.

"Anthony, what pledge do you give to Virginia?" the minister asked once Pepper had finished her vows.

"A ring," Tony replied. And with that, Cooper and Nathaniel Barton walked forward, holding a pillow with the rings on it. Tony and Pepper each lifted the opposite's ring, holding them gently in nervous fingers.

"And this ring, do you give to Virginia as a sign and seal of the endless affection with which you will cherish her, and the unbroken fidelity with which you will perform to her the vows of a husband? Do you?

"I do," Tony echoed.

"Anthony, as you place this ring on Virginia's hand please repeat after me: With this ring I do thee wed; and with all my worldly goods, I thee endow."

"With this ring I do thee wed; and with all my worldly goods, I thee endow." Tony slipped the ring on her finger with hands as gentle as a river stream. Tears welled in Pepper's eyes at his tenderness.

"Virginia, what pledge to you give Anthony?" The pastor asked, turning towards the bride.

"A ring," Pepper stated.

"And this ring, do you give to him as a sign and seal of the endless affection with which you will cherish him, and the unbroken fidelity with which you will perform to him the vows of a wife? Do you?"

"I do," Pepper replied.

"Virginia, as you place this ring on Anthony's hand, please repeat after me: with this ring I do thee wed: and with all my worldly goods, I thee endow."

"With this ring I do thee wed: and with all my worldly goods, I thee endow." Pepper slipped the band onto Tony's finger.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife! You may kiss the bride!"

Tonu swept Pepper into his arms, kissing her in the most passionate kiss they had ever shared. They pulled away, breathless.

"May I present to you Mr and Mrs Stark!"

A roar of cheers went up in the audience as Pepper retrieved her bouquet from Natasha and ran down the aisle, grasping hands with Tony. "Good Day For Marrying You" by Dave Barnes played over the outdoor loudspeakers as they disappeared into the house. Tony had originally wanted "Highway to Hell" by AC/DC to play, but that idea had quickly been shot down by Pepper.

_"Baby, the sun is shinin'_  
_Dogwoods are comin' in bloom._  
_Put on your white dress_  
_Yeah 'cause, oh baby, it's a good day for marrying you!"_

After the newly weds disappeared into the house, Rhodey pulled around the orange Audi up to the front of the house as all the others lined the driveway, ready with handfuls of rice and streamers. Strings of cans were tied to the back bumper, and JUST MARRIED was written on the back windshield in bright blue window marker. The couple had decided to forego a reception, instead running off to their honeymoon in Fiji right away.

Tony and Pepper appeared in the doorway, Pepper cradled in Tony's arms. Cheers went up and rice was thrown. Peter was kissed on the nose by Pepper and hugged by Tony before they drove away, the crowd waving streamers in their wake.

Peter waved goodbye to the rapidly disappearing car as Natasha came to collect the boy. She would be looking after him while his parents were away. Rhodey and Happy were in charge of dispersing the guests, seeing as there was no reception.

"Ready to go home, _detka?" _Natasha asked. Peter nodded, a sad smile on his face as the orange Audi finally disappeared from his line of vision. "Don't worry. They'll be back in no time. Let's get back to the tower."

"Okay." Peter leaned into Natasha's side as the pair headed to her car.

...

Check out Good Day For Marrying You by Dave Barnes if you don't know it already. It's a great song.

**Update: hey guys thanks so much for reading. One small request when you review: please don't curse or use the Lord's name in vain when you review. I am a Christian and it hurts me when people use His name in vain. Ive just had someone review and using Jesus' name wrongly and i didnt like it. I cannot remove the review. Just a heads up.**


	14. Names for the Avengers

_**Names for the Avengers**_

"Well, Pete, you're officially an Avenger," Tony said as they walked down the hall towards the common area.

"This is so awesome, Ned's never gonna believe this," Peter said, shoving his hand in his pocket and withdrawing his phone. 68 text messages, 47 missed calls, and 17 voicemails, most from Ned and MJ. Whoops.

"You haven't told Ned you've been adopted yet?"

"Um, no, it sorta slipped my mind. I haven't looked at my phone in like forever." Peter turned bright red.

"It's been three weeks since you've been adopted, buddy. You should tell your friends!"

"I know, I just forgot, I guess. I'll let them know tonight.

The pair came into the Avengers common room where the tv flickered in the background as the Avengers did various things.

"Hi guys!" Peter said, flopping down on the couch between Sam and Bucky.

"Hey, spiderling!" Clint replied from where he was playing a card game with Natasha.

"That makes me sound like a little kid, Mr Barton," Peter said, aiming a pillow at the back of Clint's head.

"And Mr Barton makes me sound like an old man," Clint replied, sending the pillow back in his direction. "Seriously, dude, we're practically your family now, start treating us like it!"

Peter caught the pillow and shoved it in Sam's face. "Okay... what do you want me to call you then?"

"You can just call me Wanda," Wanda said from her chair, lifting her face from her book. "I'm only like 2 years older than you."

Peter shrugged. "Okay."

"Y'know, we could just all be your uncles," Bucky said from his left, slinging an arm over Peter's shoulder.

"And aunt," Natasha piped up.

"That would work," Peter replied.

"You already call Rhodey "Uncle" anyway," Tony quipped from the bar. Peter blushed to the tips of his ears.

"Yeah, I guess," Peter replied.

"Barton's kids already call me Auntie Nat, so I'm down," Natasha said.

"Okay, I'm not calling anybody "Auntie". That's just weird." Peter wrinkled his nose.

"Aunt, then. It works." Natasha gave a shrug, then went back to her game.

"You can call me Uncle Sam," Sam said, swatting Peter with a pillow. "I'm patriotic, aren't I?"

"Nice, Sam," Steve said with an eye roll, setting down his sketch pad. Peter laughed.

"Just face it, Underoos, everybody's your uncle now," Tony said, coming around the counter and sitting down, drink in hand.

"Fine by me," Bruce mumbled around the pencil in his teeth, bent over whatever formula he was working on at the moment.

"What are we talking about?" Pepper asked as she entered the room, heels clicking on the tile. She plucked Tony's whiskey from his hand, ignoring his indignant whine, setting it on the counter. "It's not 5'o'clock yet."

"Names for us," Steve replied, pencil stroking his paper with practiced ease. The drawing beneath was coming together well. Sam and Bucky on the couch, with Peter in between. It was a good moment.

"And what have you decided-ah!" Pepper's words were cut off as Tony wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her down into his lap. "Tony!"

Tony shrugged and kissed her.

"Well, they're all my uncles now," Peter said. "And Agent Romanoff's my aunt now. And Wanda's just Wanda."

Pepper nodded. "That's good."

Peter beamed and chucked a pillow at Clint's head.

...

It was 11:30. Peter was laying in bed, clad in blue plaid pajama pants and a white t-shirt. He grabbed his phone from the night stand and opened his group chat with his friends in messages.

Peter: guys! i got adopted!

It wasn't long before he got some responses.

Ned: seriously!

MJ: thats so awesome!

Peter: im so excited!

Ned: who adopted you?!

MJ: yeah who?

Peter: ur never gonna believe it

Ned: DUDE. dont tell me its Mr Stark

Peter: yup

Ned: NO WAY!

MJ: peter thats amazing

Peter: and mr stark and miss potts got married two weeks ago

MJ: awesome

Ned: so did they adopt you today

Peter: umm

MJ: ?

Peter: they actually adopted me 3 weeks ago

Ned: WHAT

MJ: WHY DIDNT YOU TELL US

Peter: so sorry guys i havent looked at my phone in forever

MJ: next time something big happens you better tell us right away

Ned: yeah

Peter: ok i promise

Peter: hey listen guys you cant tell anyone about this

Ned: why

Peter: cause im legit living in avengers tower and all the avengers are my aunts and uncles now and mr stark is my dad and miss potts is my mom and if the school finds out ill never hear the end of it

MJ: lips are sealed

Ned: you got it dude

Ned: hey listen i gotta go if my mom finds out im up this late she wont be happy

Peter: ttyl

Ned: ttyl

MJ: same. gnite losers

Peter: nite

Peter put his phone down with a sigh and glanced around his room. It was large, and decorated with Ironman and Star Wars memorabilia, per Peter's request. Several unopened boxes of legos sat in the corner, waiting to be built.

A knock sounded on the door.

"Lights out, Peter," Tony called from the other side.

"Okay, Dad! G'night." Peter turned pff the lamp on the bedside table.

"G'night kid."

Peter pulled the blankets up to his chin. Boy was it good to have a family.

...

**Important: Hey guys thanks so much for reading. One small request when you review: please don't curse or use the Lord's name in vain when you review. I am a Christian and it hurts me when people use His name in vain. I've just had someone review and using Jesus' name wrongly and I don't like it. I cannot remove the review. Just a heads up.**


	15. Pets

"Dad, can we get a pet?" Peter murmured, glancing up from his phone.

"Sure, kid," Tony replied absent-mindedly, flicking at the screen of his tablet.

"Really? Can we go?" Peter asked, tossing down his phone.

"Yeah, let's go! That's a great idea, Pete! Everybody's getting pets! Come on, up and at 'em. All you, out!" Tony said abruptly, tossing his tablet on the coffee table in the Avengers common area and standing up.

"What?" Natasha looked up from her phone, giving a skeptical look.

"Everybody's on their electronics, all. the. time. Including me," Tony said, gesturing at his tablet. "You're on your phone, Clint's on his iPad, Banner's on his computer, Peter's on his phone, I'm on the tablet, Thor's watching tv and Steve -" Tony paused, realizing Steve sketching, and wasn't on a device. He shrugged and continued. "So now we're all getting pets. Help us do something other than electronics all the time. Steve, you get one too."

"Really, Mr Stark? Uh, Dad?" Peter still forgot sometimes that Mr Stark was his dad and not just his mentor anymore.

"Yes, I'm serious. Right now, in fact. Go to the shelter, a breeder, a pet store, an alley behind a restaurant for all I care, and get a pet of some kind, okay?" Tony said, walking around the room and plucking the electronics from his friends' hands.

"I'm getting a dog," Clint said with a nod as he stood up.

"That's the last thing you need," Natasha said, cuffing him upside the head. "Come on, let's go." She snatched her phone back from Stark and turned towards the staircase.

Clint followed after the smirking woman, rubbing his head.

"Are you sure Mom's going to be okay with this?" Peter asked skeptically. Pepper was off on a business trip for Stark Industries and had not a clue about Tony's antics while she was gone.

"Yeah, kid, she'll be fine!" Tony replied without giving it a second thought. "Bruce, you wanna catch a ride with us or go with Point Break and Capsicle there," Tony asked as the scientist stood up and adjusted his glasses.

"I'll go with you Cap and Thor. You guys can have some bonding time," Bruce replied, walking over to Steve and Thor.

"See you guys later," Steve said as he headed for the garage, Thor and Bruce in tow.

"Let us be off, good captain! I wish to acquire one of these pets!" Thor boomed, grabbing his hammer on the way out.

"Well kid, where do you want to go?" Tony asked as he headed to his personal garage.

"The shelter. I want a rescue," Peter decided.

"You got it!"

The trio hopped into the orange Audi and zipped away towards The ASPCA Adoption Center. Tony put on a pair of sunglasses as they walked in.

"Hello, my name is Tanya. How may I help you?" The kind woman at the front desk asked, glancing up from her computer.

"We're here to get a pet for my son here," Tony said.

"Oh yes. There is a small amount of paperwork to process if you find an animal to take, but I can show you the animals first if you'd like. Were you thinking you'd like a cat or dog?"

Tony looked at Peter.

"A dog, please, if that's okay, Dad."

"That's fine, Pete. Just fine."

"Okay, if you'll just follow me." Tanya led them to the back room, where glass kennels lined the walls, each filled with at least one dog. "Anything special you have in mind?"

Peter shook his head. "I just want to look."

"Yes, of course, take your time. I'll be over there if you need me." Tanya slipped over to the corner of the dog room, begining to fill out a form on a clipboard. Peter walked down the rows of dogs, Tony pointing out ones he liked occasionally.

"Dad, what about this one?" he asked, coming to a stop in front of a long-haired golden red dog with large soulful eyes. His tag said "Bo, Golden Retriever, 75 pounds, 2 years." He was the only dog who wasn't barking its head off and throwing itself against the glass door of its kennel.

"He's nice, Pete. This the one you want?"

Peter nodded. "I think so."

"Ma'am, what about this one? May we see this one?" Tony asked politely, waving the woman from the corner.

"Of course. You should know that while he may not seem like it now, Bo is a very hi-energy dog."

"Not a problem, ma'am. Peter here is a very hi-energy boy." Tony clapped a hand on Peter's shoulder as Tanya let the dog out of his kennel.

"Hi, Bo," Peter said softly, holding his hand out to the dog, who sniffed it politely, tail wagging hard, then promptly leaned his entire weight against Peter's knees, almost knocking the boy over. Bo whined in happiness, dancing against the boy as Peter stroked his ears.

"This is the one, Dad," Peter said. "Definitely the one."

"Okay, sounds good, kiddo. You heard him, Miss Tanya. Care to draw up the paperwork so we can take this dog home?"

"Of course, sir. If Peter would like, he can take Bo outside to play while we do the paperwork."

Peter looked at Tony with pleading eyes.

"That's fine, buddy. We'll have this wrapped up in no time."

"Right through those doors, Peter," Tanya directed, passing the boy a leash. Peter trotted out, Bo at his heels.

"Alright, Mr... what did you say your name was?" Tanya asked, leading Tony back out to the front desk, where other people were gathered in the waiting room.

"Uhh..., Parker! Yep, Mr Parker, at your service," Tony blurted quickly, not wanting to give away his identity.

"Alright, Mr Parker, right this way and we'll get your paperwork finished."

...

"Bo, go get the ball!" Peter said to the dog at his feet, chucking another ball across the fenced in yard. Bo just leaned on him, all wags and doggie smiles. He rolled on his belly and looked at Peter expectantly. "Belly rubs? Okay, okay." Peter knelt and scratched the dog's belly. Bo sighed in contentment. Peter laid beside him and they began to wrestle.

...

Okay, Mr Parker," Tanya said, "you're all approved. If you could just sign here." She passed Tony a pen and an adoption form.

"There's something you should know," Tony murmured in a low voice as he signed the paper with a flourish. "My name's not Parker." Tony slid the paper to the woman and she glanced at the signature at the bottom. Her eyes went wide as Tony lifted his shades. "The kid's adopted. Don't tell anybody."

"Mum's the word, Mr Stark," Tanya said quietly as she filed away the paper. "Shall we go get your son, Mr Parker?" Tanya asked in a louder voice.

"Yes, please, ma'am."

Ten minutes later, the Tony and Peter were walking out with a golden retriever named Bo.

"Thank you, Dad, thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou!" Peter exclaimed as he opened the door of the Audi to allow Bo to hop into the backseat. Instead of getting in the front with his dad, he got in the back with his dog.

"Settle down, Peter. You're welcome!" Tony replied as he started the car. "Next stop, Petco!"

"What are you going to get, Dad?" Peter asked. "You didn't get a dog or cat."

"I'm going to get a parrot, Pete. Gotta go somewhere special for that," Tony explained as the pulled up to Petco.

"Aw, that's awesome," Peter replied.

The pair went into Petco, Bo trotting at Peter's side. They got all the supplies needed, like food and toys and a bed. Even though the shelter had given them a collar and leash, Peter had found some Ironman gear he liked better. So Bo pranced out of the store, showing off his new Ironman harness, leash and collar with a personalized I.D. tag that looked like the ARC reactor.

"Next stop, Parrots of the World!" Tony said excitedly, starting the car and putting it into reverse. A short while later, the pair were exiting the store with all you could need for an adolescent African Grey parrot. The parrot itself was perched on Tony's shoulder, nibbling his ear. "Ow! Stop that, Maximus!" Tony said, peeling the bird's beak from his ear. Peter laughed as Tony got into the driver's seat, Maximus now nibbling on his hair. Peter once again got in the back with Bo, burying his face in his silky fur. He wrinkled his nose.

"You need a bath, buddy."

Maximus thought it a good idea to hop up on the dashboard and screech, which Bo did not enjoy.

"Maximus!" Tony said, swiping the bird to the side.

"Maximus!" the bird repeated.

"Yeah, that's you!" Tony replied.

"That's you! That's you!" Maximus shouted.

"Nooo...That's _you. _Not me," Tony replied.

"That's you! That's you!" Maximus shouted.

"Dad, you're arguing with a bird," Peter pointed out.

"Well he's argumentative!" Tony shot back as the foursome returned to the tower. Peter giggled into Bo's fur. After Tony pulled into the garage and put the car in park, Peter jumped out of the car with Bo, running upstairs to the common area where a Clint and Natasha were already sitting. Natasha had a white cat sitting on her lap, and Clint had a yellow dog with white bandages around his leg and middle on the couch next to him. Bags of gear for the animals were at their feet.

"Peter! We have to bring in the stuff for your dog," Tony said, coming into the room, arms laden with bird supplies. Maximus perched on his shoulder.

"Bring in! Bring in!" Maximus said.

"Hush," Tony said, gently flicking the bird's beak. Maximus bit his finger and Tony gave him a glare.

"Oh right. Bo, come on," Peter called to his dog who was busy greeting Clint's. Bo trotted obediently to his master's side, and Peter trotted back down the the garage. Steve, Bruce, and Thor came up the stairs next, Steve cradling a puppy, Bruce with a guinea pig in his pocket, and Thor leading a _goat, _of all things, on a leash next to him.

"Is that, a -a goat?" Tony asked in disbelief.

"Don't ask," Steve said tiredly with a frown, pulling a piece of hay from his hair. Peter trotted back up the stairs, carrying all the dog supplies in his arms. Bo held a big rubber bone in his mouth. Peter dropped the bags on the floor and sat down with Bo, who was content to lay with his head in Peter's lap.

"This is Bo, everyone!" Peter announced happily. Bo sat up and wagged his tail, giving the group a doggy grin. "He's two, and we got him at the ASPCA Adoption Center. Go say hi, Bo!" At that, Bo leapt up and went to see everyone, giving everyone a slobbery kiss. He returned and shoved his nose in Peter's face. Clint introduced his dog next.

"This is Lucky. He likes pizza."

"What's with the bandages?" Bruce asked.

"I found him on the street, all beat up. We took him to the vet and they cleaned him up. He's all better now, isn't that right, boy, huh? Huh?" Clint rubbed Lucky's ears as Lucky placed his paws in Clint's lap, tail wagging so hard it was a blur. Natasha gave Clint an exasperated laugh before introducing her cat.

"This is Masha. I got her from the shelter." Natasha stroked the white cat in her lap, and she purred in happiness. Peter noticed Masha had one blue eye and one green eye.

"This, my friends, is Gracie!" Thor boomed, holding up his goat with pride.

"Why would you bring a goat into my tower?" Tony asked incredulously, eyebrows quirking down.

"I assure you, Stark, the woman I have purchased her from told me she is fully housetrained." Gracie bleated as if to say this was true.

"That's lovely, Thor," Tony replied.

"This is Penelope," Bruce spoke up, holding up a baby red and white guinea pig.

"Aww," said Peter.

"This is Commando," Steve said, holding a black and grey husky puppy in his arms. "He's going to be my running partner."

"And this is Maximus- Ouch!" Tony cried out as Maximus bit his ear lobe. "Stop that!"

"Stop that, stop that!" Maximus mocked.

"Oh, he's perfect for you, Tony," Natasha said dryly as Clint laughed.

"What in heaven's name is going on here?" A new voice asked suddenly from behind.

"Oh, hey Pep." Tony rubbed the back of his neck. "You're home early."

...

Well, that's it for now. Also, I've been writing this Avengers character study and wondered if you guys would like me to post it on here.

3/28/20


	16. And They Danced

_**And They Danced**_

8 in the morning, Peter was on his way down to the bottom of the tower with Bo when his advanced hearing picked up strange music he had never heard before. It seemed to be coming from Natasha's rarely used dance studio.

"Friday, take me up to the dance studio, please," he said.

"Right away, Mr Parker," The AI responded, and the elevator gave a jerk as it suddenly changed direction and moved back up the shaft two floors. The door opened and Peter stepped out.

"Stay, Bo," he ordered his dog, and he walked further into the studio. He'd never been on this floor before. There was a small hallway leading towards the studio itself, and on either side of him were doors that lead to changing and locker rooms. Peter trotted up to the nearly soundproof big glass room, standing at the door. A boombox against the far wall, the CD inside playing unfamiliar music. The floor was covered with black mats, similar to the ones Midtown Tech occasionally pulled out for P.E., only bigger.

Natasha was inside, spinning and dancing, clad in a simple black leotard and red sash around her waist, with bloodred pointe shoes to match. Even more surprising to Peter was Clint. Peter had known Natasha danced, but not Clint, of all people_. _Clint was spinning around Natasha, perfoming the same moves as she. He was shirtless, his lower half covered by knee-length black leggings. He, too, was wearing bloodred pointe shoes that matched Natasha's.

Peter was mesmerized as he watched the pair spin around each other, twirling and pirouetting and holding each other as they danced. Natasha's face was graced with a a determined smile, and Clint's expression showed he was trying his hardest not to step on his partner's toes when they came close. As the music came to a close, Clint swept Natasha up off her feet and into his arms, giving one final spin before setting her down. The pair was breathless, chests heaving, cheeks red.

Peter stared in awe as their dance came to a stop and Natasha turned to him, eyes wide. She came to the door and opened it.

"What are you doing here?" she asked stiffly, still slightly out of breath from her complicated routine.

"I heard the music and wondered what was going on," Peter said with a shrug. "You should dance more often! That was amazing!" He offered the pair a smile, which quickly faded as Natasha's brow furrowed and, to Peter, it appeared she might cry. She slipped around her surrogate nephew and into her locker room, closing the door behind her.

"Aunt Nat, wait!" Peter called after her, raising a hand.

"Don't, kid. Leave her be. She'll come around when she's ready," Clint said from behind him, setting a hand on his shoulder.

"What did I do?" Peter asked innocently, wondering why in the world Natasha had stormed out.

"Nothing you meant to, bud. You don't know much of 'Tasha's past, but she was trained in this horrible place called The Red Room."

Peter nodded, he knew that much.

"They used to make the girls there dance until their feet bled, and then some. They were trained to kill, forced, actually, among other horrible things. At night, they were chained to their beds. 'Tasha doesn't sleep most nights. Her nightmares are that bad. Dancing, well, dancing helps. I'm not sure how, because it was such a traumatizing part of her childhood, but somehow it helps. When her dreams are especially bad, she comes and gets me, and we dance," Clint explained, hand never leaving Peter's shoulder. Peter nodded, eyes sad. "We've been dancing all night, kid."

Peter's eyes grew wide, and as he studied Clint further, he realized that under the sweat-slicked forehead and red cheeks, the tousled hair, dark circles, and exhausted frown that were telltale signs of a sleepless night.

"So when you're asleep, we usually dance. That's why you've never seen us do it before."

Peter nodded. "I'm sorry," he said quietly.

"Don't be, buddy, you have nothing to be sorry for," Clint replied, tousling his hair with a big hand. Peter gave a solemn nod.

"I didn't know you could dance, Uncle Clint," Peter said finally.

"I learned, for 'Tasha. She taught me almost all I know about ballet."

"Would she teach me? Maybe I can dance with her, and you could get some sleep?" Peter asked, hopeful.

"I don't know, kid, you would have to ask her," Clint replied. Although the sound of extra sleep did sound enticing, he wasn't sure if he was ready to share his traumatized friend with his surrogate nephew. "If you'll excuse me, I've got to get a shower in."

"Okay," Peter replied. "I'm going to take Bo for a walk."

"You wait 15 minutes, I'll go with you," Clint said as he ducked into his locker room.

"You're on," Peter said. "Come on, Bo. Bo? Oops, I must've left him in the elevator. Friday, do you know where Bo is?"

"Yes, Peter, Bo is with the Boss and they are coming up the elevator now."

"Okay, thanks, Fri."

The elevator opened to an annoyed Tony and a smiling, wagging Bo. Tony's white dress shirt had several dirty paw prints all over it.

"Uh, hi, Dad."

Tony wordlessly marched forward and shoved Bo's leash into Peter's hand.

"Can I ask what happened?" Peter asked, tapping Bo on the rear to get him to sit.

"I had a very important client your mother and I were taking up to the office, when the elevator opens and your dog runs out, jumps on him, licks his face, jumps on me, and pulls my pants down! Needless to say I lost that client."

Peter held back his laughter. He'd have to ask Friday for that footage later. "Um, sorry, Dad, it won't happen again."

"It had better not, otherwise I'll tan your hide," Tony threatened as he tried to dust the dirt off his clothes. Peter flushed as red as Aunt Nat's hair. "And give that darn dog a bath!"

"Yes sir," Peter replied meekly.

"What were you doing up here anyway? Dance is not your typical sport, is it?"

"I was talking to Uncle Clint. We're going to take Bo and Lucky for a walk in a little bit."

"Okay, that's fine. But make that dog behave! I don't want to see him jumping on anybody."

"Got it."

...

Clint and Peter enjoyed their walk in Central Park. Natasha had even tagged along, cradling Masha in her arms. The cat loved to be held, and wouldn't leave Natasha's arms unless she put her down.

"Aunt Nat?" Peter asked after he and Clint had let Bo and Lucky off the leashes to play with the other dogs.

"Yes, detka?" Natasha asked, fingers gently scratching Masha under her chin. Peter smiled at the name. Lately she had been shortening paukdetka to just detka, baby.

"Will you teach me to dance?" Peter asked. "I would dance with you."

"We'll see, detka, we'll see."

...

6 months later, 2:49 am.

Peter was awoken by someone shaking his shoulder. He opened his eyes to a wide-eyed redhead standing at the edge of his bed. He gave a silent nod, quickly changed pajama pants for black leggings, and grabbed his pointe shoes. He followed Natasha down to the dance studio.

And they _danced._

...

4/13/20


	17. Bo's Unusual Quality

**Trigger Warning: Panic attacks throughout**

**_Bo's Unusual Quality_**

The first time Peter had a panic attack was when Tony had to leave on a business trip. Pepper too. His heart raced, his breathing increased, and his eyes were full of fear. _Don't leave me, don't leave me, _he had cried, racing to his parents and hugging them tightly.

The second time had been at school, when he'd forgotten to study for his oral report, even though it wasn't even due yet.

The third was when Pepper and he drove by a construction site and he saw the crushed rubble of a fallen building, reminding him of when the Vulture had dropped a building on him.

The fourth was for no apparent reason, and it lasted for 20 minutes. It was then that Pepper and Tony decided to take Peter in for a doctor's visit. He was diagnosed with a panic disorder, and given some exercises he could do and emergency medicine to take.

This had been before Bo.

...

Dad had texted him. He'd be okay. Peter opened his phone and reread the string of texts sent just minutes ago.

Dad: _Happy's gonna have to pick you up today kid. I'm alright, just got some business to attend to._

Petey-Pie: _ok :(_

Dad: _You'll be fine. See you tonight._

Dad: _I'll have Hap bring Bo, if that would help?_

Petey-Pie: _ok :(_

So why wasn't he prepared for this? Ever since he'd been adopted, he'd developed a strong attachment to his parents, and didn't like being away from them. He managed school, although there was always an underlying feeling of dread. The black Audi pulled up instead of the orange one. Happy rolled down the window and greeted him.

"Hey, Kid," he said flatly, how he always did. Peter could feel his heart racing and his breathing quickened. He dropped his backpack and knelt on the sidewalk, one hand on his chest, as if he'd been struck.

"Kid, kid!" Happy jumped out of the car and got down in front of him. Peter whimpered and hid his face in his elbow. "Darnit, Tony," Happy muttered, fumbling his phone out of his pocket. "How do I deal with a panicking kid?" he muttered as he dialed his boss. He was about to put the phone to his ear, but Bo came flying out the open door on the Audi. He shoved his nose into Peter's chest, wagging and putting his paw on his knee. Peter's hands flew up involuntarily and tangled in Bo's fur. Ever so gently, Bo nudged Peter onto his back and laid on his chest.

Peter's breathing evened out and he stopped whimpering.

"Kid, where's your meds?" Happy asked frantically. Peter pointed weakly at his backpack, and Happy dug in it and found the zippered pouch that held them. Peter nudged Bo off of him and sat up, holding tightly to his collar.

"I-I d-don't need them, Ha-appy," Peter mumbled. "M'okay now." But as he glimpsed the empty black car once more, as it began again. Bo forced him down on the sidewalk again and laid on his chest, kissing his face. After a moment, Happy helped Peter take a little of his medication after he had calmed down.

"Are you ready to go now?" Happy asked quietly, and Peter nodded, fingers still tightly intertwined around his dog's collar. He helped Peter stand up and grabbed his backpack. "Hey, come on now! Go home!" Happy shouted angrily at the gaggle of kids gathered around them, and the kids slowly dispersed.

"D-did you see that, H-happy?" Peter asked as he crawled into the backseat and Bo followed, setting his head on his boy's lap.

"See what, kid?"

"What Bo d-did! He st-toped my panic attack! I've read ab-bout these dogs online. I th-hink Bo is a service dog!"

"But you got him at a shelter, Pete," Happy pointed out, pulling out of the school's parking lot.

"Yeah, I-i know, but how would he know how to do that?" Peter asked, ruffling his dog's hair.

"I don't know, kid," Happy replied.

"I'll have Dad look it up when I see him next." Peter took a deep breath. "Speaking of Dad, when's he coming home?"

"He'll be back tonight, okay?"

"Okay." Peter buried his face in Bo's fur.

When Peter arrived at the tower, he went, backpack, dog, and all, to Aunt Nat's floor. No way was he going to be by himself.

"Friday, alert me when Mom or Dad gets home," he said during the elevator ride.

"Certainly, Peter."

"Hello, _pauk-detka," _Natasha greeted as he stepped into her living quarters.

"Hi, Aunt Nat. Um, can I do my homework here?" he asked.

"Of course. What brings you by?" she asked, going to the fridge and withdrawing a couple gatorades. She tossed one his way. Masha, her cat, jumped up on the counter and stared at Bo disdainfully.

"I, um, I had another panic attack today," he replied. "Dad didn't pick me up from school, and he's not home yet, and, oh, I don't know..." Peter trailed off, embarrassed.

"It's okay, _detka," _Natasha replied, coming back and ruffling his hair.

"The most amazing thing happened though," Peter began, "I think Bo was a service dog!"

Natasha's eyes grew curious.

"How?" she asked.

Peter relayed the story to her. "I'm going to have Dad do some research when he gets back," Peter said excitedly. "I've never thought about having a service dog before," he said. "Maybe we can get him ceritifed and everything!"

"That's amazing, Peter," Natasha began. "Maybe you can. But for now, you have homework to get to. You can use my bed if you want."

"Yes!" Peter ran down the hall to her bedroom. Aunt Nat had the best bed ever. She had a super soft blanket and the mattress was like a marshmallow.

"The dog stays off though!" she called after him as the retriever trotted after his boy.

"Yes ma'am!"

...

"Peter."

The boy lifted his head and looked around. He was in Natasha's bed, school books around him. Bo was curled up next to him.

"Bo!" he hissed! "Off the bed!" The dog obediently jumped down.

"Peter."

"Oh, hi Friday."

"You asked me to inform you when Boss arrived home. He has just stepped onto your family floor."

"Awesome, thanks, Fri!" Peter leapt out of his surrogate aunt's bed, papers flying everywhere.

"Where's the fire? You get your homework done?" Natasha asked from her small kitchen table where she was grooming Masha.

"Um, I think so? I don't know. I fell asleep. Dad's home, see you later!" Peter jumped in the elevator, Bo following behind him. Natasha shook her head and went to her bedroom, collecting Peter's scattered school items. She'd have them sent up to him later.

...

"Dad!" Peter slammed into Tony's chest as soon as the elevator door reopened on his floor. Maximus, who had been perched on his shoulder, flew up to the light fixture, squawking his disdain.

"Hi, kiddo," Tony wheezed, wrapping his arms around Peter.

"Hey, I need you to look something up, because I think Bo is a service dog!" Peter exclaimed into Tony's shirt.

"Oh, yeah, Happy called me today and told me what happened. I'm sorry I couldn't get you today."

Peter shrugged sadly. "It's okay."

"I'll look into it soon, okay?"

"Okay, thanks!"

"Peter, Agent Romanoff would like me to notify you that your school books are still in her bedroom," Friday annouced out of the blue. Peter blushed.

"Oops. I'll go get it later," Peter muttered. "Can we go down to the lab?"

"Go get your schoolwork now or else you'll forget. I'll look into Bo's history while you're gone."

Peter was gone in a flash.

"Fri, get to work," Tony said.

"On it, Boss." It only took a few moments for Friday to gather every scrap of information she could possibly collect about Bo's history.

"Kid! I've got some news," Tony exclaimed when Peter came crashing back into the suite.

"Really? What?" Peter dumped his schoolwork on the table.

"Well, I had Friday do some digging. Turns out Bo here, who's full name is Beauregard, by the way, was a service dog for about a year for an elderly woman. He helped with her depression and anxiety, and brought her meds when needed. He was trained by Service Dogs of New York. Apparently the woman died and her relatives dumped him at the shelter, not wanting to deal with him."

"Is he still certified?" Peter asked. "Like, can he come to school with me?"

"I don't know. I'll contact SDNY and see what they say. You want him to come to school with you?" Tony inquired.

"Well, um, yeah, I mean, I, uh, um, had a panic attack the other day that I didn't tell you about, and then what happened today, and I, um, just thought it might be cool to have a dog with me. And, um, Flash still bothers me sometimes, you know, and-"

"Hold up, that kid is still being a jerk? I thought I told him to back off," Tony said. Peter flushed, remembering vividly how his dad had pulled the gauntlet out of his watch and threatened Flash.

"Yeah, um, but if Bo was with me, he might help," Peter mumbled.

"I'll see if he's still certified, and then if the school allows it, it's okay with me if he goes with you."

"Awesome!" Peter said. "Come on, Bo, let's go see what else you can do!" Peter ran off towards his bedroom, Bo hot on his heels.

Tony shook his head at his kid's antics, then pulled out his phone to call Service Dogs of New York.

...

"Mom! Dad! Check this out!" Peter ran into the living room where his parents sat on the couch, working on a few Stark Industries projects. Pepper had been told about Peter's attacks and Bo, and was quite interested.

"What, Peter?" she asked, clamshelling her laptop. Peter held up a finger, then tossed his pouch of meds on the coffee table. He got down on the floor and wrapped himself in a ball, fake whimpering. Bo did what he had done before, shoving his nose in his chest and wagging his tail, and laying on his chest. When Peter's fake attack seemed to get worse, Bo got the pouch of meds from the table and brought them to the boy.

"Good boy!" Peter said, taking the pouch and standing up.

"That's very good!" Pepper exclaimed while Tony grinned.

"Great job, kid. And I've got some great news. Mr Beauregard here is still certified. I've transferred ownership to us, and they are sending us a Service Dog vest and leash via overnight express."

Peter's entire face lit up. "Can he go to school with me?" Peter asked.

"Your Mom and I have talked about it. Yes, he can go to school with you because we believe he can genuininely help you, but he is not for showing off and messing around with, got it?"

Peter gave a sincere nod. "I understand."

"Good." Tony ruffled the kid's hair.

...

Peter clipped Bo's bright blue service dog harness around the dog's chest and middle. _SERVICE DOG. __I AM WORKING, PLEASE DO NOT PET ME, _it read in big bold letters. Bo had been given a refresher course and been re-certified in Peter's name, so he was good to go.

"Ready for your first day of real work, buddy?" Peter asked the dog, making sure his panic medicine pouch was velcro-ed to the side of his bag, making it easily accessible for Bo if needed. Bo woofed in response and rolled over, asking for a belly rub. Peter patted him, then shouldered his backpack and stood. "Come on, silly, let's go." Peter trotted downstairs.

"Good morning, Peter. Ready for Bo's big day?" Pepper handed Peter a bowl of yoghurt and a banana. Peter took it and set it on the table, then scooped up a cup of dog food from the bin by the fridge, pouring it in Bo's bowl. He then dropped his backpack on the floor and sat down at the table and inhaled his breakfast.

"Slow down, kid," Pepper laughed, toeing his backpack out of the walkway and sitting down next to him. Peter swallowed and smiled bashfully; he was already finished. "Do you have water for Bo?" Pepper asked.

"Yep, I have 3 water bottles and a bowl for him already in my backpack."

Have a good day, Peter. Dad's waiting for you in the garage."

Peter deposited his dishes in the sink. "Bye, Mom." Peter shouldered his backpack and grabbed Bo's Ironman leash from the hook by the elevator. SDNY had sent him a new one that matched his blue harness, but Peter liked the Ironman one better. "Come on, Bo," Peter said, opening the elevator with a push of a button. Bo trotted behind him and they disappeared from view.

...

"Have a good day, kid. And remember, Bo is working. He's not to be a distraction, got it?" Tony asked as he pulled up to the school.

"Got it, Dad. Love you." Peter clipped Bo's leash to his harness and hopped out of the car.

"Love you too, kid," Tony said, then pulled away from the curb. Peter gripped Bo's leash tightly as the students strewn about the courtyard stared at him. Bo pressed against his leg comfortingly. Peter patted his head.

"Come on, buddy, let's go," Peter mumbled, refusing to look at everyone as he made his way inside.

"Dude!" Ned whisper yelled as he reached his locker. "Why didn't you tell me you got a service dog?"

"Oh, I forgot, Ned, sorry. And this is Bo! You've met him before! We found he was a service dog after I had a panic attack and he stopped it. Now he's certified to come to school with me and stop any panic attacks I might have." Peter shoved his medication in his pocket and his backpack in his locker.

"Wait, Bo is a service dog? That is so awesome dude!"

"I know right!"

"I can't pet him though, right?"

"No, you can't right now. I'll let you after school though, okay?"

"Okay, awesome. See you at lunch."

Ned and Peter went their separate ways towards their classes.

"Yo, Parker!" a familiar voice came from behind him and Peter frowned.

"What, Flash?" he asked exasperatedly, turning to face the bully.

"What's with the dog, Parker? Did Mr Stark get him for you because you're an incompetent little freak?"

"No, Flash, he's for a legitimate medical condition. Go away; I have to get to class."

"And you just have this medical condition just now?" Flash asked, jumping on front of him.

"No, I've had it for a while. Go away."

"Come on, Parker, tell me what's going on," Flash sneered. "What are you sick with?" Flash grabbed Peter's arm and Bo growled at him. "Yikes." Flash let go.

"Flash, leave me alone!" Peter shoved past Flash.

"Why should I? It's not like Mr Stark is here to defend you! In fact, he's probably off doing Ironman stuff and doesn't even know you exist!"

Peter froze. He felt his heart begin to race. He stumbled and fell to his knees. Bo immediately did his thing, shoving his nose in his chest and putting his paws on him. Flash stared dumbly at the scene. Peter laid back and Bo laid on his chest. Peter had read he did that because the pressure slowed his heart rate.

"Peter!" Principal Morita ran up to the boys just as Bo crawled off Peter and he sat up. "What's going on here?"

"P-panic att-tack," Peter stuttered. Bo crawled onto his lap.

"Are you okay? Do you need the nurse?" Morita asked as Flash turned to leave. "Not so fast, Mr Thompson!" Flash cringed, but stayed put.

"No, I-i'm okay. Bo h-helped me." Peter ruffled Bo's fur and took a deep breath.

"What happened?"

"Flash said something about Mr Stark, my dad," Peter whispered, wiping his eyes with his sleeves. Principal Morita knew of Peter's adoption, but Flash certainly didn't. "I-I, don't know what happened, I-I just b-broke."

"It's okay, Peter." To Flash, he said: "Mr Thompson, how many times have I told you to leave Mr Parker alone? Detention after school, you know the place. Now get to class!"

"Yes sir," Flash muttered angrily. Principal Morita offered a hand to Peter, helping him get to his feet.

"You alright?" Morita asked. Peter nodded shakily.

"So this is your service dog, eh?"

"Yeah, his name is Bo. You can pet him if you want." Peter wiped his nose on his sleeve.

"I thought I wasn't supposed to?"

"You can if I give permission."

Principal Morita patted Bo on the head. "I'll write you up a late pass, okay?"

Peter nodded. "Okay."

...

"Dude! I heard what happened with Flash. Are you okay?" Ned asked frantically at lunch as Peter collected his tray from the line. Bo walked calmly at his side.

"Yeah, Ned, I'm fine." Peter sat down with his friend. MJ soon joined them.

"Sup, losers. What's with the dog?" she asked in her normal, expressionless way.

"Oh, yeah, I haven't had a class with you yet. All the teachers have been announcing it in like every class and its super annoying. Anyway, this is Bo, he's my service dog for my panic attacks," Peter exclaimed.

"That's kinda cool, actually," MJ said around a mouthful of sandwich.

"Yeah, it is," Peter agreed. "He stopped one from getting worse earlier."

"Flash?"

"How'd you know?"

"Just a guess. That guy is such a jerk."

"Tell me about it," Peter muttered.

...

"Hey kid! How was school?" Tony asked as Peter jumped into the orange Audi.

"It was good! It's awesome having Bo with me," Peter replied, tossing his backpack on the floor.

"Any attacks today?"

"Um, well, yeah kinda. Bo stopped it though!" Peter said quickly.

"Oh, okay, that's good. Can I ask what triggered this one?" Tony asked as he pulled away from the school.

"Oh, um, I'd rather you not," Peter mumbled.

"OKay, okay. I won't press," Tony left the subject alone. "Bo behave alright?"

"Dad, he's a service dog. Of course he behaved alright!"

"Alright, alright, I'm just asking!" Tony said, mock offended. Peter rolled his eyes. "Hey, you want ice cream?"

"Always."

Tony laughed and Bo howled along.

...

**_Sorry for the wait; I was working on another story, plus beta-ing another, and his chapters are sooooo long (12,000 words!)_**

**_I made Service Dogs of New York up, and I don't know anything about service dogs, so please just go with this for the sake of the story, okay?_**


End file.
